


It's about being the right person

by spoonlesslupie



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: #TeamSunshine, Alpha/Omega, F/M, Maybe Natasha deserves one too, Natalie Rushman - Freeform, Not A Fix-It, OFC - Freeform, Post-Captain America: Civil War (Movie), Soul Bond, Sunshine Treatment, Tony needs his HEA
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-20
Updated: 2017-03-20
Packaged: 2018-10-08 11:33:13
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 21
Words: 33,139
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10385748
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spoonlesslupie/pseuds/spoonlesslupie
Summary: Can one broken soul be the answer to healing another? In a world where everyone is born with a potential soul bond on each wrist, there's someone out there for everyone. But Tony is a special kind of broken, so it's going to take a really special someone to help him put himself back together.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Author’s Note: Chapters 16 and 20 contain the Explicit-level content that can be skipped over without missing any plot. All other chapters are, at highest, rated Mature for non-graphic discussion of past rape and associated trauma.

Fic Canon: Everyone is born with at least two soul marks, usually the first words their soul’s match will say to them. One soul match is platonic, the other has the potential to be romantic but “happily ever after” is not a guarantee. The soul mark warms or tingles and changes color from gray to color when the right person says the words. If a person’s soul match dies, the mark turns black. With 7 billion people on the planet, many simply disregard the soul marks. Each person also comes into a secondary gender during puberty: Alpha, Beta, or Omega. The secondary gender does not inherently translate into strength or position; a female Alpha may not be as physically strong as a male Beta or Omega, simply because of her size and/or physical condition, for example. Secondary gender characteristics do determine who can carry children, however. Male Alphas can impregnate female Omegas. Neither female Alphas nor male Omegas can get pregnant. Male Betas can impregnate female Betas, but not female Omegas. Female Omegas go into a monthly heat, during which time they are fertile and exude pheromones that make them attractive to males. Suppressants are available in the same manner that birth control pills are available to female Betas who do not wish to get pregnant. Population norms are generally 50% Betas, 25% Alphas of either gender, 25% Omegas of either gender. Tony Stark, of course, is an Alpha.

***

After yet another sleepless night, Anna Waycroft watched the room around her brighten with shaded sunlight. This, she determined, would be the last sunrise she would spend chained to a cinder-block wall in this room. This would be the last day she spent keeping time by the shadows made by the bars on the windows hidden by newsprint, marking days and weeks by scratching lines in the paint on the wall next to her. 

On a sleeting November night five years ago, she’d been walking home from the subway station to her little house near Brooklyn College when she’d been accosted by a strong Beta male, drugged, thrown into the back of a van that smelled of raw produce, brought to this room in an unknown part of the city and chained to the wall. Without her suppressants, Anna went into her Omega heat in a matter of days, and the Beta raped her repeatedly through the course of her cycle. When it ended, he allowed her to shower, gave her minimal clothing, chained her back to the wall, and began a routine of benign neglect that was only broken by her heats. Off-heat, she would be kept in the small room, fed once or twice a day, usually oatmeal or dry cereal and a bottle of water, and her chain was long enough for her to reach the toilet installed in one corner of the room. When her heat came on, and she was weakened by fever and hormones, her captor would unchain her, bathe, and then rape her in the main apartment as long as her pheromones called to him. Then the shower, and back to her wall. 

In the first year, Anna held out hope that her husband or the police would find her. Her husband was a Wall Street broker and she’d landed her dream job as media relations assistant to Pepper Potts of Stark Industries. They both worked long hours at challenging jobs, and she’d been secure in the knowledge that even though he was a Beta and she an Omega and they couldn’t have children, he’d loved her.

So she fought her captor as best she could, then tried her best to make him lose interest in her. By the second time she could hear the sounds of Christmas in the city around her but see only the newsprint on the windows and the same four walls, she had sunk into a depression that whittled away the last of her muscle tone and ended her heat cycles. Only when her chestnut-dark hair started falling out in clumps did Anna realize that if she didn’t fight her way back toward a will to live would she actually die in this small room, with no one the wiser.

For another year, Anna survived as best she could in captivity. Her heats never again normalized, for which she was thankful, until the day she gained a roommate. Another Omega, drugged and bound, was chained to the opposite wall in what Anna learned was March of 2015.. Her name was Marcy, she was a college student, a music major, and had dreamed of playing with the New York Symphony. Together, during the long hours they were left alone, the women counted the days, the months, and the years as they passed. But yesterday their captor had added a third woman to their tiny prison, and Anna realized he was never going to stop. Sharon was bonded to an Alpha and a mother of two, and she had been captured at the beginning of her heat cycle, which meant she spent the night in the main apartment. The screaming had only been part of what had kept Anna awake all night. The rest had been devising a plan and talking Marcy into it. It would take the both of them to free all three.

Anna judged it to be midmorning when the door opened, and she and Marcy both stood against their walls as their captor carried in a tray with two bowls, spoons, and bottles of water on it. He squatted to set the tray in the center of the room, and Anna nodded at Marcy. Quickly, they each crossed the room, so the man was between their stretched chains. They each stepped over the other woman’s chain, creating a loop, and crossed back to their own sides of the room. The chains caught him at the shoulders, and as they pulled, the metal links tightened around his neck. The two small women used the small space of the room and their legs as wedges against the man until he stopped breathing. And for a time, the only sound they could hear was each other’s harsh breaths.

“We did it,” Marcy sobbed. “Oh, my God, we did it.” 

“Hang on baby,” Anna soothed as best she could through her own tears. “We’re not out of here yet.” She scrambled over to the body and began searching pockets. “If he doesn’t have the key on him we’re going to need Sharon to find it.” But she found a keyring in his front pocket, and, with shaking fingers, found the one that released her from her chain. Crying harder, she crossed the room to Marcy and freed the younger woman. The two scrambled out of their prison to discover Sharon, unconscious and bleeding on the bed in the main apartment. “Look for a phone,” Anna told Marcy. “Dial 911.” She checked Sharon for a pulse, and sighed in relief when she found one. When Marcy didn’t find a phone on her first search, Anna limped to the door and began struggling with the locks. She emerged from the apartment, grateful at least for the tank top and boxer shorts she was wearing. She found herself at the end of a dark hallway, and a quick look showed none of the other apartments even had doors on them, much less occupants. She went back to Marcy and Sharon. 

“One of us has to go downstairs to find help,” she told Marcy. “Are you ok to stay here with Sharon or do you want to try to find someone who can help us?”

“I can’t stay here any longer, Anna,” Marcy sobbed. “Please don’t make me, please.” 

“Okay, okay,” Anna hugged the woman. “We’re at the end of the hall, and the stairs are on your left. I don’t know whether the whole building is abandoned or just this floor, or how far you’ll have to go to get help. If you have to leave the building, look at the front for an address. Look at the street signs, Marcy, can you do this?” She tried not to panic at the thought of being left behind, but they couldn’t leave Sharon, and they weren’t strong enough to carry her.

Marcy took a deep breath. “I promise, Anna, I won’t leave you here. I will bring help. I will get someone. I swear it.” Each statement came out stronger, and Anna believed her.

Hope in Marcy’s words and freedom from her chains kept Anna going for the first few minutes alone. Then she could feel the adrenaline rush wearing off and she began shaking. Sitting on the bed and holding Sharon’s hand made her feel weak and useless again, so she searched for a phone, slowly this time, checking the bathroom, the closet, and finally, between the mattress and box spring under Sharon, where her hand closed around a familiar rectangle shape. “Oh, thank God,” she whispered, drawing the phone out and pressing buttons until she heard it power on. 

“911, what is your emergency?” The operator was literally her lifeline. 

“Um, can you tell me where I’m calling from?” Anna responded. “I’ve been kidnapped and held prisoner along with two other women.”  
***

Anna and Marcy held hands in the large, multi-bed hospital room reserved for Omegas in heat. Sharon reclined in a bed nearby, having regained consciousness between Anna’s emergency phone call and Marcy’s arrival with a pair of police officers. Sharon was suffering from a concussion and a lot of bruising and minor scrapes, Marcy and Anna had both been diagnosed with severe malnutrition, dehydration, and bruising. None of the medical professionals they had seen mentioned the psychological damage the three Omegas had suffered, but they were being treated by both the medical staff and the police with the gentleness reserved for survivors of severe trauma. Marcy had given the police her parents’ information, and Anna asked them to call her husband. Sharon’s family arrived at the hospital in a rush of noise, tears, and rejoicing, and Anna had found the display overwhelming after years of mostly quiet.

First Marcy, and then Anna had been taken to a large, airy room and told her story to an Alpha detective Stinson. He would, it seemed, be taking charge of their case. He had been kind, and kept the windows open and a table between them. Anna appreciated the space, and being able to see the nurses working busily at their station from her seat at the table. Then she had returned to wait. Marcy’s parents arrived next, having come from her home in Connecticut, and Marcy was cleared to leave with them, provided she received follow-up medical care at home. And still Anna waited.

Finally, around 6 p.m., Anna saw the elevator doors open and her husband step off. He was accompanied by an older woman and four children. Detective Stinson rose with her to meet him in the waiting area. “Douglas,” Anna started, at the same time Detective Stinson said, “Mr. Waycroft.”

“Detective,” Doug Waycroft offered a handshake to the man, but did not acknowledge Anna. “This is my wife, Donna, and our children. I apologize for the wait; I had to get off work and pick them up before I could come by.”

Anna thought she was going to throw up. His wife? And she gauged the ages of the children – the two oldest, likely twins, were at least six. “Doug?” She hated the hesitance in her voice. Over the past several hours she had realized that more than five years was a long time for him to wait, but it didn’t look like he had waited at all. “These are your children?”

“Yes, Anna,” Doug finally responded to her presence. “I know you realize now this means Donna and I were together before you left, but, as an Omega, you couldn’t give me children, and she did. I was going to talk with you about it, but then you were gone, so we just moved forward.”

“Left,” Anna said dully. “Like I had a choice in the matter? I was kidnapped, Douglas. Held against my will. And we discussed the whole no-kids thing before we married. You said you were fine with it!” She felt hot, angry tears well up behind her eyes and willed herself not to cry in front of this family.

“Well, I changed my mind,” he responded coolly.

“So, are we divorced?” Anna asked. 

“I couldn’t get divorced without you signing the papers,” Doug said. “I had you declared dead.”

Detective Stinson had to put an arm around Anna’s waist to hold her up. Dimly, she heard the elevator ding and knew they were no longer alone in the waiting area.

“You had me declared dead?” Anna felt the room spin once before she found the reserve of anger that had kept her alive. “Well you’re going to have to deal with me being un-dead now.” She straightened her spine and fisted her small hands. “I suppose you’re still living in my house?” Doug flushed and wouldn’t meet her eyes, confirming her suspicions. “Fine. I’m going to need everything of mine packed up. I need the fire safe and all the documents in it, along with my ‘death’ certificate.” She couldn’t help making air quotes. “I think two days should be enough time for you or your wife,” she sneered in anger, “to get it to me…” and then she trailed off, realizing she had nowhere to go, nowhere for them to deliver it to, and no idea where she’d even be spending the night.

“At Stark Tower,” came a lifesaving voice from over her left shoulder. Anna turned her head to see the man who had been her boss’ boss in 2012 standing by her side. He turned toward her and said “I keep several apartments at the tower for traveling SI executives and visitors. You are welcome to one for as long as you need it.” Her eyes widened and she got a little lost for a moment before she was able to reply, “Thank you, Mr. Stark.”

Tony Stark blinked as the words scripted on his left wrist burned to life and he gently wrapped Anna’s arm around his own. “Mr. Waycroft, I presume?” He turned his gaze to the Beta and allowed a little snarl into his smile. “You heard the lady. Forty-eight hours. Stark Tower. Big building downtown. You can’t miss it. I’ll tell the receptionist to expect you.” And he deliberately turned his back to the family, steering Anna to face the detective. 

“Detective Stinson, thank you for calling Stark Industries about Anna. We are so grateful she’s been found,” Tony calmed his tone and extended his hand the other Alpha.

“Mr. Stark, it’s a pleasure to meet you. I didn’t expect you to be the one to come down when I called,” Stinson replied. “But when after several hours Anna’s husband hadn’t responded, I thought I had best try her second emergency contact, which was her workplace. It was a stretch anyone there would be close enough to her to come, but I wasn’t going to leave her in a women’s shelter for the night.”

Anna was starting to understand how Tony Stark had come to her rescue. The man confirmed her theory, telling the detective, “Anna worked directly for Ms. Potts, my CEO. And we were all upset when she disappeared. Ms. Potts has a standing order that if Anna ever resurfaced, she was to be notified, so when you called earlier, and Pepper was not available, she sent me.” Inwardly, Anna snorted. More likely, they had all been concerned that her disappearance was a plot against Tony or Pepper and when she turned back up Tony had been just curious enough to run down and find out for himself. 

Stinson also seemed smart enough to read through the lines of Tony’s story, and smiled at the genius/billionaire/philanthropist. “Well, Ms. Waycroft can tell you her story herself, when she’s ready, but there is nothing keeping her here at the hospital right now, and as far as the police are concerned, her case is closed with her kidnapper deceased. It’s my understanding that she needs follow up medical care and rest, but you’re free to take her home.”

“Thank you, detective,” Anna found her voice, reminding the Alphas that she was, indeed, capable of speaking for herself. “I appreciate everything you’ve done today.”

Stinson handed her a business card. “If you ever need anything else, Ms. Waycroft, please don’t hesitate to call me.”  
Anna curled her fingers around the card and turned to Tony. “Can we please get out of here?”

Tony smiled at her gently. “It’ll be my genuine pleasure, sweetheart.”


	2. Chapter 2

The ride from the hospital to Stark Tower – marked with a single “A” on the side – started out quiet. Anna didn’t really know where to start, and Tony spent the first few minutes firing off texts on his phone. Finally, he tucked the phone into a jacket pocket and turned to her. 

“You know, I’ve spent my whole life with ‘Thank you, Mr. Stark’ written on my wrist. Do you know how many people have thanked me over the past 40-something years?” He said with his trademark winning grin.

Anna laughed for the first time in what felt like forever. “Well I’ve been stuck with three circles of cryptic chicken-scratch about apartments in a tower. I didn’t know whether I’d be one of the traveling executives, an employee, or a roving homeless person.” Her smile faded. “Looks like homeless for the win.”

“Hey, hey,” Tony soothed, taking her hand gently in his, giving her plenty of time to pull back if she wanted. When she left it there, he rubbed the words tattooed in his spiky scrawl. “This has been a hell of a day for you, on the heels of a hell of a few years. And I may have prevaricated a little in front of the good detective and your ex – I don’t actually want you to stay alone in one of the executive apartments. I would like it if you would stay in one of the guest rooms in the penthouse – with me.” When she shot him a startled look, he continued quickly. “This isn’t some Alpha thing, or even a soul mark thing. At least not completely. I’ve been through kidnapping and torture. I might be a little bit familiar with what you are going to be going through. And you shouldn’t have to be on your own for it. Although the soul mark thing might actually help, when it comes right down to it.”

“What do you mean?” Anna asked carefully. “And what about Ms. Potts? I mean, I know I’ve been out of the loop, but the two of you….” She trailed off.

Tony shook his head. “Pepper and I gave it a try, after I made her CEO of Stark Industries. But long term, she couldn’t handle the Iron Man gig, and I wouldn’t give it up. She’s still CEO, though, and she was really happy to hear you had been found. She always said you were one of her favorite assistants.”

The car pulled into the garage at Stark Tower, and Anna was grateful for the relative privacy on their walk to the elevator. The police had taken her tank top and shorts as evidence, and she was wearing a set of ill-fitting hospital scrubs one of the nurses had given her after her exam. Next to Tony in his how-many-thousand-dollar suit, she felt like a homeless waif, indeed. But Tony treated her as though she were dressed in Armani and Jimmy Choos, handing her into the elevator and inserting his thumb into the biometric lock for the penthouse. “I’ll have to get you keyed in, and Friday?” he paused long enough for a female voice with a light Irish accent to respond. “This is Ms. Anna Waycroft. She will be staying in the guestroom of her choice for the foreseeable future. Scan for measurements and place an order for casual clothing to be delivered. You know the places we use. Also,” he broke off and turned to Anna as the elevator opened, “are you hungry? I’m starved. How do you feel about pizza?”

“Boss,” Friday interrupted. “May I get Ms. Waycroft’s palmprint for security?”

“Oh, right,” Tony swung around. Anna was a little dizzied by his energy. “Put your right hand here, sweetheart,” he instructed as a palm scanner appeared next to the elevator. “Friday, priority level, Pepper, security level….” He paused and regarded Anna with a sharp gaze. “Happy.”

“What does that mean?” Anna asked as a green light scanned her hand and she stepped away from the wall. 

“Priority levels are for emergencies – Friday now knows you are of the same importance to me as Pepper when it comes to getting you either out of the tower or to a safe room if something happens. Security level gives you access to files on any Stark tablet or computer in the tower; Happy has access to pretty much anything that isn’t Avengers-slash-Shield business or top secret research and development. Basically, you can now use the computers to catch up on everything you missed without asking me for a password to unlock whatever computer or tablet you are using.” Tony rattled as he walked across a large, open living area with a massive television, two sofas and several comfy-looking chairs, and a dining table to a bar that divided the space from a kitchen. “Water? Juice? How about that pizza?”

Anna sank into the nearest chair. “Water, please. You move very fast, you know that?”

Tony threw back his head and laughed. “Not many people can keep up with me. I’ll try to slow it down a little tonight, for you.” He perched on the arm of the chair and handed her a bottle of water. “But I really am hungry, and you need to start eating regular meals.”

Anna sighed. “The doctors told me to start small, bland, and light. My system isn’t used to real food anymore. Maybe just cheese pizza? It does sound amazing.”

“Cheese it is. Friday, you get that?” Tony called. Anna thought giving orders to an incorporeal being would take a lot of getting used to. “How about a movie night out here on the couch, and you can sleep whenever you want to? I’ll show you your room.” And while they waited for the pizza to arrive, Tony showed Anna the penthouse; three bedrooms, each with their own bath, a small office near Tony’s room that looked like he used it for a dropping-off point for whatever he was carrying that he didn’t know what to do with, (some people had junk drawers, Anna mused, Tony had a junk room) the kitchen, “just tell Friday what you’d like to keep in stock, and she’ll order it,” and he was in the process of explaining how to operate the movie and television selections when the pizza arrived. They settled on one of the couches with napkins and the pizza box on a low table in front of them and Tony cued up the original Star Wars. “Something you’ve seen before so you don’t feel like you’re missing anything if you fall asleep,” he said. And it turned out he knew what he was talking about, because Anna finished one piece of pizza, declared herself full, and by the time the Millennium Falcon took off from Tattooine, she was asleep with her head on Tony’s lap.  
  ***

She woke alone, bundled under two blankets on the couch, the sun streaming in the floor-to-ceiling windows she had only vaguely noticed last night. “Good morning, Ms. Waycroft. You are safe and in Stark Tower. Mr. Stark is in his workshop. The time is 7:02 and today is May 2, 2017.” Anna took a deep breath, relaxing muscles she hadn’t realized were knotting up in panic. “Thank you, Friday.” She said in a normal tone. “Is there a toothbrush in one of the guest rooms that I can use?” Friday responded: “Both guest rooms are fully stocked with whatever toiletries you might need. There is also a package of clothing for you next to the elevator. It was delivered late last night.”

Anna retrieved the small box and checked out both the guest rooms again, selecting the one closest to Tony’s room. After a shower (washing her hair!!) and brushing her teeth, she felt better than she had in years; almost human again. A quick glance told her looking in the mirror for too long would be bad; she really was skin and bones, even her face was gaunt and dry. Her blue eyes, light near the pupil with a dark navy ring around the outside of the iris, looked tired, even after a full night of sleep. “Long road ahead,” she thought, donning soft socks, a pair of black knit pants, a dark t-shirt, and a long-sleeved jacket that zipped up the front. There were several sets of similar clothes in the box, and Anna thought that, for a being without a body, Friday had made good selections. Was it weird to thank an AI? She was too tired after her shower to attempt to dry her long hair, so she tucked it into the hood of the jacket and headed for the kitchen. 

Mentally reviewing the doctors’ suggestions yesterday, Anna found some eggs in the refrigerator and a pan in which to scramble them. “Healthy fats, lean proteins, small, bland meals for at least a week, but as much as I can eat,” she mused out loud to herself as she plated the eggs. Turning from the stove, she nearly dropped the plate when she saw Tony leaning against the bar.

“So glad I’m not the only one here who talks to myself,” he said. “Although, I usually pass it off as talking to one of the ‘bots or Friday.” Tony pulled out a chair and gestured for Anna to sit. He waited until she was seated to enter the kitchen and pour himself a glass of juice from the refrigerator. 

Anna took a bite of warm eggs and swallowed, enjoying the flavor and texture of anything not oatmeal. “The bots?” she asked.

“Butterfingers, You, and Dummy,” Tony said. “My helper robots in the workshop. Though sometimes they’re more hindrance than help. I’ll introduce you. They’re the first robots I created, and have low levels of AI – just enough to be helpful without being able to go all Skynet on me.” He peered at her as she finished her eggs. “So,” he said, taking her plate and handing her a bottle of water, “I know you got checked over at the hospital yesterday, and I might have had your medical records sent over last night.” Anna shot him wide, surprised eyes. “I’d feel better if I could have one of our own docs take a look at you and run some tests today, if you’re okay with that.”

“That’s a little invasive, Tony,” Anna felt defensive for the first time. “I know I’m staying here and all, but you don’t get to take over. And I’m not a project of yours.” From her time working with Pepper, she’d heard plenty about how Tony believed it was easier to ask for forgiveness than for permission.

“No, hey, no,” Tony waved his hands, palms facing Anna, in a gesture of peace. “It’s just,” he paused as he circled the bar to sit next to her. “There is this connection between us. You might not feel it, not yet, because you’re sick or run down, or not ready, but I do. I felt my words change when you said them. And I really want to take care of you the way I wish I had let someone take care of me after Afghanistan. I don’t want you to do anything you don’t want to do, which is why there’s not a doctor here right now, but I have this need where you are concerned, and it’s not an Alpha thing, it’s the soul thing. I want to make sure you’re going to be in my life for the rest of my life – in whatever manner you want to be.”

Anna softened. “I felt like that even before I knew you, Tony. Back when I worked for Ms. Potts, one of the reasons I was so good at my job was because I felt the same kind of protectiveness over you that she did, so I was willing to work a little harder to manage the mayhem surrounding you. I just didn’t know why I felt that way. I thought it was a career thing, work as hard as your boss works, you know?”

Tony smiled and touched her hand. “No one worked as hard as Pepper. So you’ll see a doctor? We have a medical staff here in the tower; you won’t even have to go out.”

“You have a medical staff here,” Anna said. “Is that an Iron Man thing? Am I seeing Iron Man’s doctor?” she teased.

“Maybe,” Tony teased back. “But we also have a full service salon and spa, a day care, and several restaurants and gift shops, right here in the building. I have a thousand or more Stark Industry employees working here on a daily basis, it becomes part of the perks and benefits for them to be only steps from whatever they need. That way, when I need them to work overtime, there’s a lot less pushback.”

“I remember,” Anna said. “And that salon is on my list of things I need today. So, I’ll see your doctors, let them run whatever you feel they need to run, and then I get a haircut. Because this,” she pulled the mass of dark, wet hair out of her hood and it fell nearly to her waist, “is out of control. But Tony, before you go getting all pleased with getting your way,” Anna arched a thin eyebrow, “my medical records are for my eyes and the doctors’ only. You can ask about results, but it’ll be my decision to share or not.”

“Deal,” Tony stood, placing a light kiss on her forehead, and was off, giving orders to Friday and leaving ordered mayhem in his wake.


	3. Chapter 3

Late that afternoon, after her visit with a very nice Omega doctor, a nap, lunch, a haircut and moisturizing facial “because, honey, your skin!” a snack and another nap, Anna asked Friday for Tony’s location. “Boss is in the workshop, Ms. Waycroft. If you’ll take the elevator, it will stop on that floor.”

Anna had gotten used to talking to the AI throughout the day, and Friday had been instrumental in helping her reorient herself to interacting with another person. “Please ask him first, Friday, if he would mind company. I don’t want to interrupt his work if he’s on a roll.” There was a pause, and Friday came back, “Boss says you are welcome to come down, Miss.” So Anna boarded the elevator and rode for what seemed to be a long time. When the doors opened, she could see this was Tony’s real home. 

Iron Man suits in differing stages of construction or repair lined alcoves to her right. Ahead was a drafting table with papers and delicate instruments. To her left lay the majority of the shop, and Tony was coming out from between two long tables covered with projects in progress. The whole space was remarkably clean, as was Tony, for having spent the whole day working. Tony reached her, taking her hands in his and leaning back to look her up and down. “You look like you feel better,” he said with a wide smile. 

Anna shook her head, causing her hair to swing around her face. She’d had it cut to a chin-length bob that rose in the back, giving the dry, undernourished hair the illusion of body and fullness. “Do you like it?” she had a sudden attack of shy girlishness that was completely unlike her.

“I do,” he said. “Are you happy with it?” Oh, clever man. Pepper (or someone) had taught him well in the ways of women. 

“It suits me for now,” Anna said. “And it will be easy to take care of while I recover. I had long hair before, but this morning it was just so heavy to wash.” She drifted off.

“Well, you look good,” Tony assured her. “And you’ll get better and stronger as long as you keep eating, right?” He led her around the worktables to a low leather couch and television area beyond the main area of the shop.

Anna nodded. “Subtle, but yes, the doctor gave me pretty much the same results from yesterday. I’m anemic, underweight, a little malnourished,” Tony scoffed and she glared at him. “I should focus on slowly regaining muscle tone and stamina, and he wants to recheck my bloodwork every three months for at least a year. There’s,” she hesitated. “Omega stuff, you don’t need to know about, really. But I’m generally healthy.”

“Sweetheart, if there’s Omega stuff, and you’re going to be living here, I should probably be a little in the know,” Tony pressed. It was a concern, if she went into heat he would respond as an Alpha, and neither of them were ready for that.

“I haven’t had a heat in more than two years, Tony,” Anna explained. “I’m not healthy enough. It’s one of the reasons there were other Omegas captured with me. Once I became unable to have regular heats, he…” she broke a little, and Tony held out an arm for her to snuggle under, if she wanted. Anna took the invitation, curling into Tony’s side. It was easier to continue if she wasn’t looking at him, and the bond she was beginning to be able to feel gave her a sense of comfort. “He took Marcy because he had gotten used to having sex with an Omega during her heat and he liked it. Detective Stinson explained it to us yesterday. And when Marcy and I both fell off our heats, he took Sharon. God, Tony,” she cried, for herself and for the others, for what they had suffered. And for once, Tony was relieved to see the tears. She needed to talk this through, and tomorrow’s task had been to get her to see a psychologist. This might be the opening to that discussion.

“It’s okay, sweetheart, let it out,” he soothed. “You survived, you’re here now. I’ve got you.” He repeated the phrases while she cried herself out and wiped her eyes on her jacket. “Better?” he asked gently when her breathing evened. She nodded, still unwilling to meet his gaze. He took the bottle of water Dummy was handing him and passed it to Anna. “Good job, Dummy.” To Anna: “come here,” Tony stood, pulling Anna to her feet, and walking them both over to the nearest work table. He picked up a small silver cuff bracelet with a decorative red oval gem in the center. “Right arm or left?” he asked, and Anna held out her left arm.

Tony fitted the thin cuff over his own handwriting, which he saw has colored in to a brown similar to the lightest strands of Anna’s hair, or the dark brown in his eyes, and adjusted it so it would not slide off her delicate wrist. “I had to guess at the measurements, but it looks like I got close. Now watch,” he lifted her right thumb and pressed it to the inside end of the cuff, right over her pulse point. He wrapped the rest of her hand over the cuff, so the knuckle on her first finger touched the gem, and her fingertip pressed the outside end of the cuff. And the bracelet shifted, stretching over her hand and fingers to become a gauntlet, complete with repulsion in the center of her palm. Anna held her hand out in front of her, amazed. “You will never, ever, be at anyone’s mercy again, sweetheart,” Tony promised. “I am going to teach you how to use this, and you are going to wear it all the time. When you activate it, an alarm goes off here and Friday sends me a message with your location. I want to take care of you, but even more, you’re going to be able to take care of yourself.”

Anna looked into Tony’s eyes and saw reassuring, fiery, determination. And she knew that she had found the one person who would go to the ends of the Earth for her. “How do I close it?” she asked in a whisper. Tony showed her the release catch, and when the glove had once more become a bracelet, she wrapped her arms around his shoulders in a hug, burying her face in his neck and taking a deep breath, letting his scent settle into her mind and soothe her. She felt his muscular arms wrap around her body and wasn’t afraid. Instead, she felt protected, cherished in a way she hadn’t since she was a small child, and above all, safe.


	4. Chapter 4

The next morning, Anna woke in her new bed in Tony’s guest room feeling rested and a little disoriented, but not panicked. She considered it progress. Over dinner, Tony had given her a new Starkphone and tablet, and encouraged her to spend the day “catching up on what she’d missed.” She had easily agreed with him that a therapist would probably be beneficial, and planned to start her day researching potential candidates. “It’s not like I have the privacy issues you did, Tony. I can pretty much see anyone who will abide by standard doctor/patient confidentiality.” “Huh. Good point.” He’d also mentioned introducing her to a lawyer “to kick-start her resurrection,” making Anna laugh.

After a shower – would that ever not be a luxury? – and breakfast, Anna found a notepad and paper and started up the tablet. When she narrowed her selection to three psychiatrists with experience in trauma therapy, she Googled their locations. For her first trips out of the tower, close would be good, but not mandatory. One of the practices was a couple of blocks away, and when she called and explained her circumstances, the doctor was willing to see her after hours or on the weekend, at her convenience. Anna scheduled a Saturday morning appointment, two days away, assuring the doctor she wasn’t having any unusual nightmares, she was in a situation where she was both safe and closely monitored. Feeling like she’d made huge progress, she made herself a snack and settled down with the Starkpad. 

“Okay, time to come back from the dead,” she said to herself, logging into her Facebook account. First, she deleted her husband and a large number of casual acquaintances, and people she didn’t remember ever meeting in person. “Rumors of my death have been greatly exaggerated,” she posted, attaching a copy of the New York Post article about the discovery of three women held in a Bronx apartment building, the longest since November of 2012, and the death of their captor, Marcus Crosby. She updated her profile photo, as unflattering as it might be, and started a group message to the people she had considered close friends – people with whom she had had regular, face-to-face contact, giving them a little more of the story but not her current location. She just said that she was safe and would not be returning to live with her husband, that he had moved on in her absence. In a separate message, she gave her new phone number to a small handful of women to whom she had been close – a coworker who, from all appearances still worked for Stark Industries, two women with whom she’d gone to college and been sorority sisters, and a woman who had been close friends with her mother and who had known Anna her entire life. Though Anna’s parents had both died in 9/11; her mother in Tower One and her father a firefighter, Anna had stayed close to her mom’s best friend, Judy. And sure enough, it was Judy who called Anna’s new phone first.

“Anna-na-na, please tell me this is really you,” the woman said in a tone of desperation. “Oh, mama-two, it’s really me, I promise!” Anna replied with the nickname she’d been using since she was a toddler. And time flew by as the women caught up, laughing and crying (a lot of crying) and made plans for an in-person lunch at the tower the next day. 

By the time she got off the phone, Anna was exhausted. She fixed a small lunch and took a nap. When she woke, Friday advised her she had a delivery in the living room. She wandered out, and found Tony sitting on one of the couches, working on a Starkpad, a large plastic tote she recognized as the type she used to store holiday decorations sitting next to the coffee table. Her old fire safe box and a cardboard file box rested on the table. She came to a halt near the boxes, and looked down in confusion. “I thought there would be more,” she said.

Tony sat up and patted the couch next to him. “I asked Friday to let me know when these were delivered; I thought there would be a lot more, too. I haven’t peeked – which for me is the height of restraint.” He drew a small smile from her, and tried a different tack. “Okay, so like ripping off a band-aid? Just pull off the tops?” Anna bit her lip and nodded, rising to the tote first. 

She pulled of the lid, and her face softened. “Photo albums. My scrapbooks, some college mementos, this is almost all photos and the like. And it looks like it was put away carefully, nicely. That’s nice. I’m glad to have these.” She sat next to Tony on the couch and pulled the cardboard box toward her, pulling the lid off as she did. “This looks like newspaper clippings of my disappearance,” she flipped through manila file folders. “And this is the – ha ha – death certificate I was issued. Tax returns, old bank papers, pretty much the contents of my office filing cabinet. Some of this will be just junk to be thrown away.”

“Ah,” Tony said, “but you’ll be the one doing the throwing away, not anyone else!” And he got the smile he had hoped for. This was a truly dismal task, and he was furious at Douglas Waycroft. What average young woman didn’t have random tchotchkes from her childhood or teen years hanging around her personal space? Where were the doo-dads? The mementos? Hell, he had more memorabilia in his workshop than Waycroft had saved for his wife. 

Anna reached for the fire safe box last, and unlocked it with the key attached to the handle. “This should be the rest of the paperwork your lawyer will need to bring me back from the dead,” she said, “although I’ve already started taking those steps myself.” She told Tony about updating her Facebook profile and making careful contact with a couple of people as she drew out her birth certificate, the deed to her house – “Wait, you mean you own the house he’s living in?” Tony interrupted. 

“Yes,” Anna said. “I inherited it from my parents when they died, and when we married in 2005, he moved in with me. It meant we didn’t have to take on a mountain of debt to get a place in the city.” She paused as she picked up a small square box. “I don’t remember this being in there,” Anna felt her breath whoosh out as she opened the ring box and saw a sparkle of emerald and diamonds.

“What’s wrong, Anna, breathe!” Tony put his arm around her shoulders and helped her refocus. “What is that?”

“Tony, this is my grandmother’s wedding ring,” Anna explained through a wave of dizziness. “I inherited it on my 21st birthday, and I wore it on my right hand. I always wore it on my right hand. Tony,” her blue eyes were huge and stood out in her face, which had drained of color. “I was wearing this the night I was kidnapped. How did it get back into my fire box?”

“Okay,” Tony’s brain provided five possible scenarios and one really unpleasant but likely one as he reached out and closed the ring box. Taking it from Anna’s shaking hands, he placed it on the table and rubbed her fingers between her own. “I think we need to get you a drink of water before you pass out, and then call that detective before we go through the rest of the box. Can you sit back and just – not do anything while I get you some water, sweetheart?” He was trying to be as comforting as possible, and a little color returned to Anna’s cheeks as he wrapped her in a blanket from the back of the couch.

“Yeah,” she said. “I can do that.” Tony strode to the kitchen and filled a glass with cold water as she curled into the corner of the couch. “Detective Stinson’s card, and my phone, are on the dresser in my room,” she said as he handed her the glass. “I’m feeling okay now; I’m not going to pass out on you. It was just a shock.”

“That’s good, that’s fine, but you stay there; I’ll get the card,” Tony instructed with a little bit of Alpha command in his voice. He couldn’t make her do what he said, but the instinct to take care of her, both as a soul bond mate and as an Omega in distress, was driving him to act. He rushed to the guest room and grabbed both the card and phone. Then returned to sit by Anna’s feet, which she’d tucked up onto the couch. She looked impossibly small and frail, sitting there, wrapped in a blanket and sipping her water, and it was all he could do to not scoop her up and bundle her into a safe room.

“I’m going to make the call, okay?” Tony checked with Anna even as he dialed the number on the card. Anna nodded, but he noticed her eyes were sharper and she was looking closer to normal. “Detective, this is Tony Stark,” he spoke when Stinson answered. “I have Anna Waycroft here with me; her husband just dropped off her things and there’s something we think you should look at. Would it be possible for you to come to the tower?” He paused. “Excellent. I’ll tell the desk to send you right up. Thanks,” and he hung up the phone. To Anna, he said: “we caught him doing paperwork, so he’ll be here in half an hour or so. Do you want something to eat?” she shook her head, and Tony looked around for a distraction. “Well, why don’t you pick out one of those photo albums and we’ll sit at the bar and you can introduce me to young Anna.” 

She knew what he was doing, but it was a good idea to pass the time while they waited. So Anna handed Tony her empty water glass and uncurled herself from the corner. Shaking off the blanket, she folded it neatly and draped it back over the end of the couch, then perused the box of photo memorabilia. Finally, she chose one with a floral pattern on the cover. She joined Tony at the bar, where he was finishing another phone call. “Sweetheart, I called my personal lawyer, too.” He took her hand after she’d settled into a chair and played with her bracelet. “I was going to call them anyway, remember, to start the process of bringing you back to the legal land of the living?” She nodded. “Well, I think we might be into something here, and I want you to have someone in your corner right from the start.” Wordlessly, Anna took her hand back and opened the photo album. “Okay, well, Don will come on up from his office when Friday lets him know Stinson is here.”

Anna said: “I made this album when I graduated from high school, so there are a lot of my favorite pictures of my parents and my grandparents in here, and the best ones from my childhood….”


	5. Chapter 5

Forty minutes later, Tony had a much better idea of the kind of woman Anna was. Even as a child she’d been serious, studious, and devoted. She’d been an only child, but had pets. Few girlfriends and even fewer boyfriends appeared in the photos. But her parents had been devoted to each other and to her, and there were lots of photos of the kind Tony himself didn’t have – with three people who were laughing and looked genuinely happy together. He was glad she’d had that; it gave her the stability to deal with everything she had been through and what he suspected she was about to go through.

The elevator dinged, and Friday announced: “Detective Stinson, Boss.” Tony and Anna rose from the bar and crossed to greet the detective.

“I hope you don’t mind, detective, but I have asked my personal lawyer to come sit in with us, as well,” Tony said.

“Since I don’t yet know what ‘this’ is, Mr. Stark, you are of course free to have whomever you wish present. It’s your meeting,” the lean, silver haired detective was working to remain relaxed, but his sharp blue eyes missed no detail, and focused on the partially-emptied boxes on the coffee table. Fortunately, the elevator opened again, and Tony made another round of introductions.

“Donald Watkins, this is Anna Waycroft and Detective Joseph Stinson,” the men shook hands. “Miss Rushman, I wasn’t aware you had returned to our legal department,” Tony addressed a curvy petite redhead standing as Watkins’ shoulder. 

“I have the relevant experience regarding Ms. Waycroft’s identity needs,” Ms. Rushman replied in a smooth, even tone. “So Mr. Watkins tapped me when you asked for a meeting.”

“I see,” Tony responded, and there was a brief undercurrent of tension before he turned back to Anna. “Anna, detective, this is Natalie Rushman, from Stark Industries’ legal department. Mr. Watkins is my personal lawyer, and does not represent SI interests. Both will be able to help Anna, I think, and I’d like them here while we go through the rest of the contents of her fire safe box.” He waved the group over to the sitting area, and Anna took her previous place in front of the boxes. Watkins and Rushman took the other sofa, perpendicular to Anna, and Stinson took the opposite end of the couch where Anna sat. Tony remained standing, near Anna’s shoulder.

“Perhaps,” the detective began as he pulled out a small notepad,” you could start with what made you call me. You said you’d found something?”

Anna looked up at Tony, and he nodded to her. She was calm and spoke clearly as she told the three about learning that her husband had had her declared dead and her demand that he return her possessions and the 48-hour time limit. “This is what arrived this afternoon, while I was napping.” Friday supplied the exact time and offered that video surveillance of the delivery was available. “I opened the tote box of photo albums first, and then the box of papers. Then I unlocked the fire safe box. I always kept the key attached to it pretty much the way it is now. I pulled out some papers, and came across this ring box. I didn’t recognize it.” Her hands trembled lightly as she reached for the box and opened it, then set it back down on the table. “This is my grandmother’s ring. I never took it off. I was wearing it the night I was kidnapped. I know I was.”

The detective sat forward and inspected the ring without touching it. “It’s an unusual ring,” he said. 

“It used to have all diamonds in it,” Anna said. “But when I inherited it, the prongs were so worn down the jeweler had to basically rebuild the ring. So I had him replace every other diamond on the outer clusters with emeralds, since that’s my birthstone. The ring is one of a kind.”

“And after you were kidnapped, do you remember having it?” the detective asked as gently as he could.

“All of my clothes and jewelry were taken from me in the first few days after I was taken,” Anna said, and Tony understood she meant everything was taken during her heat cycle, when she was weak and fighting for her life. He had to take several deep breaths to control the rage that reddened his vision for a moment, reminding himself that Anna needed him right now. He put a gentle hand on her shoulder, and she twitched, caught between hellish memories and the present.

“What other jewelry were you wearing that night?” Stinson asked, and wrote as she listed her wedding ring, a pair of diamond stud earrings and a pair of small silver and gold hoop earrings. “No bracelets, necklaces?” he asked. When Anna shook her head, he said: “Okay, you did well to give me a call. I’m going to put this in an evidence bag and set it to the side for now, and I want you to finish going through the box. We’ll be looking for anything else that doesn’t belong there. Anything you don’t recognize, we’ll set aside. Sound good?” He kept his attention on Anna even as he produced the evidence bag from a jacket pocket, closed the ring box and sealed it in the bag, initialing and dating the seal. 

Tony made eye contact with Don Watkins, who had seen him through some sticky situations. At the lawyer’s nod, Tony spoke: “That sounds fine, Anna?”

Anna scooted over to the center cushion of the couch. “I’d like you next to me, if that’s okay, Tony. I almost passed out when I found the ring, and I’m obviously not any healthier now than I was an hour ago.” Tony was absurdly proud of her seeking his support and perched on the edge of the seat next to her. And he was even prouder of her when she reached once more for the fire box and her hands weren’t shaking.

She started with the paperwork; life insurance policies for both herself and her husband – both the lawyers and the detective asked for copies of hers – death certificates for her parents, her marriage certificate – again, the lawyers wanted a copy – her immunization records, and her birth certificate – copy to the lawyers. “Oh,” she breathed after she lifted out the final piece of paper. “What?” voices around her responded in chorus, triggering a little laugh. 

“I was wondering what had happened to my jewelry box, but it looks like he just dumped the whole thing in here and it all settled under the papers.” Rushman huffed indelicately and Anna sent her a look of complete agreement. “This is going to take some time to untangle.” 

“May I help?” The redhead knelt on the opposite side of the table and cleared off the papers. “If we simply tip the box over and empty it, it may be easier to just pull pieces away.”

Anna nodded wordlessly, and the women went to work. Pieces were inspected and went into piles for further cleaning or untangling later. Necklaces on one side, earrings teased out and placed with their matches, and last, a small pile of rings and a couple of jewelers envelopes. “Most of these are costume jewelry,” Anna said as she set rings aside and came to the envelopes. “One of these is the diamonds from my grandmother’s ring, one is my mother’s wedding ring,” she held the envelopes up to the light from the windows to identify the contents. “That’s funny,” she said. “There are two with rings.”

Detective Stinson sat forward, renewed interest in the proceedings. “Place them both on the table, please.” Anna did as he asked, and sat back. Rushman remained where she was, watching closely. “Mr. Stark, might you have a clean box cutter or razor blade I could use?”

“Of course,” Tony jumped up and went to his office, returning with an angled razor blade on the end of a metal handle and a plastic cutting sheet. 

“Right, engineer,” said the detective as he took the tools. He pulled a pair of disposable gloves from his pocket and put them on, then placed both envelopes on the cutting sheet. Carefully, he sliced open the end of one of the envelopes and tipped it upside down, spilling the contents onto the sheet.

Anna gasped. “That’s my wedding ring. How…” she trailed off and for a moment Tony was concerned she might become faint again. But she was starting to put the pieces together on her own. “If the man who took me took these off of me, and gave them to my husband, does that mean my husband had something to do with my kidnapping?” she asked. “Did he HAVE me kidnapped? Are my rings proof that I was supposed to be dead? Did he try to have me killed?”

Detective Stinson had scooped the ring and envelope into a second evidence bag, sealed and labelled it. He sat back and regarded Anna. “That’s exactly what I’m going to start looking into, Ms. Waycroft. The rings aren’t conclusive proof of anything, and since the key stayed attached to the box, anyone in the home could have put the rings in the box. But I’m going to take the box into evidence as well, start running some tests on the rings and see if we can get anything off the box, and I’m going to start digging for connections between Marcus Crosby, Douglas Waycroft, and Donna Barnes-Waycroft.”

“Excuse me,” Anna stood and very determinedly did not run to her bathroom, where she threw up everything in her stomach.


	6. Chapter 6

Tony was hovering. He’d finished up the meeting with Detective Stinson, promising copies of the needed paperwork and another interview at a future date. He’d handed Don Watkins all the papers the man asked for, with the understanding that “these don’t leave the tower.” And he’d narrowed his eyes at ‘Natalie Rushman’ and said simply, “you, I expect I’ll be seeing around.” She’d smiled in a way he’d learned not to trust and followed Watkins out of the penthouse without a word.  
Now he was standing in Anna’s doorway, a bottle of water in one hand and a plate of something in the other. She lay quietly on the bed, a wet washcloth folded over her eyes, which could mean anything: she had a headache, she’d been crying, she had a headache from crying, she wanted to be left alone…. Too late. Sensing his hover, Anna lifted the cloth and rolled her head to look at him. “Come in, Tony.”

He sat on the edge of the bed and set the plate of crackers on the nightstand, handing her the water. She shuffled to sit up, and took long swallows. “Is everyone gone?” 

“Yeah,” he replied. “You do a good job of ending a meeting. I should bring you with me when I have to go meet with the board.”

Anna almost choked on the water she was swallowing as a laugh bubbled up. “Oh, how is this my life?”

“You know, I ask myself that all the time,” Tony said. “Then I remember – I’m Iron Man.”  
***

They spent the afternoon unpacking Anna’s albums onto a shelf in her room (no more surprises, thank goodness) and had an early dinner of Chinese before retreating to the workshop. Anna scraped her jewelry into a pile and dropped it onto her dresser to be dealt with later. The envelope with her mother’s ring she opened, and slid the ring onto the middle finger of her right hand. “Mom had such delicate hands,” she said. “Her ring never fit me before now.” 

Tony gave Anna the receipt he’d received for the rings Stinson had taken with him. “I’ll show you where the safe is in here, so you can put your papers in there after you go through them.”

Anna took her Stark tablet with her to the workshop and settled onto the couch there. When Tony continued to sit with her after they ate, she said, “I’m okay now, you don’t have to hover.” He kissed her on the forehead and wandered to the nearest worktable, tinkering where he could still see her. After a couple hours of surfing the internet and getting caught up with a little of the time she had missed, Anna turned on the television for background noise and fell asleep.  
***

“What the hell EVEN was 2016?!?” Tony woke with a start and peeled a random piece of spare – what had he fallen asleep working on? – off of his face. He turned wide but completely not awake eyes to the furious woman waving a Starkpad at him.

“Wuh?” he tried to form a thought, maybe even a sentence. Not happening. Coffee. Need. Coffee. He staggered toward the elevator with the angry pixie on his heels.

“David Bowie, Alan Rickman, Glen Frey, Nancy Reagan, Jo GARAGIOLA!” the shrieking voice of outrage paused for breath. “Gary Shandling, Admiral Freaking Ackbar! Prince!!! Oh, my purple word, Tony. Gene Wilder, Muhammed Ali AND Arnold Palmer, Janet Reno, Leonard Cohen, Florence Henderson, Ron Glass, oh special hells, John Glenn, Za Za, George Michael, R2D2 AND Princess Leia AND her mom? I just can’t Tony. I just,” thank all the minions she was winding down, “I just can’t even. But above all,” oh shit, here she goes again, “What was Steve Rogers thinking?” 

Oh. Brain cells started firing as the first drips of coffee hit the bottom of Tony’s mug. Anna had apparently woken – he squinted at the windows – early, it was maybe 7 a.m. and had read about the Great Unpleasantness the rest of the world knew as last year, and the Avengers so-called Civil War. “Let me, ugh, coffee,” he gestured. “And I’ll walk you through it.” 

Anna peered closely at him. “You’re really not at your best first thing, are you?” she noted.

“Coffee,” Tony agreed. “You haven’t seen me before coffee.” He gulped, burning his tongue. “And I may or may not have any idea what time I actually fell asleep this morning.”

“Four-twenty-two, boss,” Friday supplied helpfully. “Tattletale,” Tony responded without malice. “So, shower, then back here and I’ll make breakfast?”

Anna gave him a guilty look. “You shower, I’ll make breakfast. Pancakes? Eggs?”

“Yes.” Tony waved his refilled mug in her direction and wandered off to his room.

 

Over breakfast, he filled her in on the Avengers’ split. “Bottom line, Rogers sees Bucky and loses his higher reasoning powers. And I mean, yeah, you do everything for your friends. But when 117 countries are asking you for the same thing, maybe that’s something you have to look at. And maybe I was a little emotionally compromised. I’ve got too much blood on my hands, Anna. It was like the Merchant of Death all over again in some ways. But there are ways to handle things. There’s a way to stand up and be a person, to say: ‘I will be responsible for my actions.’ And that wasn’t happening with the Avengers. We were leaving a trail of bodies and I’m not even sure some of them realized that.”

“Oh, Tony,” Anna sighed. “So you lost Bruce, who understood and could keep up with you in the lab. Then you lost Pepper because you are Iron Man and that’s not a thing you can just take off. Then Colonel Rhodes got hurt. You had a really bad year.”

“Well, I did get the arc reactor taken out of my chest, so I’m healthier than I was before. And Pepper is still my CEO, so I’d say I really came out on the positive side of that relationship. Plus, part of me had to know Pep and I wouldn’t last forever. I mean, I have your words on my wrist.” Tony shrugged. “Speaking of which, why did you even get married?”

Anna shifted in her seat. “Look, I didn’t know whose words were on my wrist.” She defended when Tony scoffed. “Plus, when I got married in 2008, you were dead.”  
“I was dead for less than three months!” Tony shot back. 

“I know, but really, I didn’t know it was you. I was 28 and had been working for SI for a couple of years and had just started working for Pepper. Then you were gone and Doug proposed; we’d been dating a long time. Neither of us wanted kids, so the fact that I’m an Omega didn’t matter. At least, that’s what he said. I’d been on my own since my parents died in 9/11 and Tony, I wanted someone who would love me. I figured my soul bonds would be platonic, if I ever met them. My other bond is still unknown, too.”

“Really?” Tony took both her wrists in his hands and really looked. His own words, now in brown on her wrist, matched hers, which had turned dark blue on his. On his other wrist, in brown, he had “How old are you, anyway?” and Rhodey had “Old enough!” in red to match. But on the inside of Anna’s right wrist, in blood red, was “May I help?” 

Tony cursed long and creatively in as many languages as he could remember. 

Anna looked down: “Huh,” she said. “Well, that’s new.”


	7. Chapter 7

Tony wound down and fixed himself a drink. “I know it’s breakfast, but honey, you’re going to want one, too.” And then he told her about ‘Natalie Rushman,’ who was apparently Natasha Romanov, aka Natalia Romanova, aka the Black Widow. He started with her backstory; born in 1984, orphaned, raised to be a Russian spysassin, defected to SHIELD compliments of Clint Barton, spied on Tony during his Palladium poisoning days, current loyalties unknown after working both sides during the so-called Avengers Civil War.

“Sounds lonely,” was Anna’s response when Tony was finished. 

Tony startled, meeting Anna’s eyes sharply. “Never thought of it that way. Huh.” 

Anna studied the words on her wrist. “From an outsider’s point of view, Tony, she’s been used and hurt and had to make her own way much the same way you have, only with a fraction of your resources. It’s no wonder she came back to work for you. With SHIELD in disarray and all her secrets out, this may be the safest home she has. And who knows, maybe she liked being Natalie Rushman, legal beagle for the great Stark Industries. Here and now she can do a job without having to report anything back to anyone, including you if you didn’t even know she was here. Plus, SI has a great benefits package,” she smirked.

“Well, there’s no time like the present to find out what’s going on, if she’ll tell us,” Tony responded. “Friday, please ask Miss Rushman to return to the penthouse at her earliest convenience.”

They waited a mere fifteen minutes before the elevator announced her presence and the redhead strolled into the room. Tony had taken care of the breakfast dishes and Anna was once again curled up on the couch with a Starkpad. 

“Ah, Natalie,” Tony greeted with insincere boisterousness. “It is Natalie we’re going with now?”

“Tony,” the redhead greeted evenly. “I prefer Natalie and plan to stick with it unless there is unforeseen SHIELD or Avengers activity that requires the return of Natasha.” To Anna she said, “I apologize for the deception. I am settling into semi-retirement and have selected Natalie Rushman, legal assistant, as my identity for the foreseeable future. It’s also the identity which will allow me to help you regain your own. I’ve brought the papers I am prepared to file with the courts for you to resume activity. You should be able to get a driver’s license and a new social security card this afternoon, if I file these this morning.” She proffered a file folder, and Anna took it, gesturing for Natalie to sit on the couch with her. Tony took a seat in one of the chairs near Anna.

“This is excellent, Natalie, thank you for your work. Tony explained about your history and identity, and I’m not looking to upset any of that. We actually asked you here because of something else entirely.” Natalie arched a single, expressive eyebrow, and Anna continued. “One of the reasons I’m staying here with Tony is that he has insight into what I’ve been through and has been really helpful in my recovery. The other is this,” Anna stuck out her left wrist with Tony’s words and bracelet on it. “It happened in the hospital, pretty much right after I was found.” Natasha studied the words, and then gave Anna another silent look. “Yesterday, this happened,” Anna held out her other wrist, with Natalie’s words. “I didn’t say anything back, so I have no idea if you have corresponding words, but I promise you the words were black before yesterday.” Because “May I help?” could be anyone.

“My words were removed,” Natasha said quietly after taking a deep breath. “Widows were not allowed attachments, and that included words of the soul.” She turned both her wrists up, and Anna could see very faint scars on the ivory skin.

“Oh,” Anna sighed. “That breaks my heart a little for you. And makes me pretty of ragey on your behalf.”

“Um, no,” Tony piped up. “We had a rage monster. Awesome dude. Didn’t work out, though.” He shifted forward, and Natalie turned to him. “Which brings us to this little trio we have going on here, Natash-alie. See, now you and I are actually stuck with having to deal with one another instead of you just stealth working for me and me not knowing anything about it. So, shall we deal with the baggage in the room or just lock it in the closet and move forward? Not that I’m not a fan of closets, mind you…”

“Tony,” Natalie called upon her training to make her body language as open and honest as possible, then realized what she was doing and leaned in. “I’m sorry. I know what I did, letting Steve go, turned out badly for you.” Tony huffed and looked away. “Tony,” she reached out and touched his hand, and his gaze shot to hers. “I was trying to do what I thought was right. I signed the Accords in hope of working with you and within the law. I was trying to keep my friends – my family – together.” She stressed family, “and that meant working with both sides to keep you from actually killing each other, from doing damage so permanent we could never come together again.”

“The Avengers were the closest thing you’ve had to a family, weren’t they?” Anna asked and Natalie nodded.

“It was the first time I had a safe place to be and people I admired who weren’t also expected to actively try to kill me,” Natalie replied. 

“So you came back here after – why,” Tony asked sharply. “And why secretly? Why without telling me? Did you think I didn’t need to know you were in the building?”

“Actually,” Natalie replied with a little heat, “I wasn’t sure of my welcome. But beyond that, working several floors below you I could still help protect you and be here in case of any Avengers-level threats while not having to actually go back to being the Black Widow. I saw you try to give up Iron Man for Pepper, Tony, I did. I saw you running toward danger in nothing more than your Tom Ford suit. And thank God you had that gauntlet with you. You tried a balancing act I admire. And one I would like very much to try. I’m burned in the spy world. And I don’t even know who I am at this point. But I liked being Natalie Rushman, working for Pepper and SI legal and protecting you. So I thought I’d give it a try. And I thought I’d give you some time before I approached you. Because I knew, too, Tony. I read the Winter Soldier files – I translated them for Steve. So I knew about your parents. And I didn’t tell you, either. And I owe you for that.”

Tony jerked back as if he’d been struck. “Of course you knew.” He stood and paced, then walked to the bar and poured a second drink for the morning. Natasha watched him and Anna ping-ponged between watching the two of them. Tony paced as he sipped his drink, finally stopping to look out at the expanse of the city. 

“You know what? It doesn’t matter that you knew. You never preached honesty and truth in all things at me. You were raised and trained as a spy. I expected – still do expect – a certain level of, mmmmm, let’s call it prevarication, from you. I’m annoyed you’ve been working for me right under my nose, but that’s on me, too, because I don’t keep track of those sorts of things and I never asked Friday to monitor you. So yeah, that’s on me.” He stalked over to stand in front of the women and got right into Natalie’s face. “But if you ever hurt Anna, if I find out you lie to her or go behind her back for anything more unpleasant than a birthday present, I will end you. Are we perfectly clear?” Anna gasped.

“I agree to your terms,” Natalie responded, unperturbed. And the two relaxed as though a switch had been thrown. “Drink?” Tony offered. “Vodka tonic would be lovely,” Natalie replied. Anna blinked. “For you, sweetheart?” Tony asked, touching Anna’s shoulder as he passed on his way to the bar. “Maybe some juice?” he suggested. “All this posturing has to have your blood sugar a little low.”

“Is that what just happened?” Anna replied weakly. 

“Welcome to life with a couple of Alpha Avengers as your soul bonds, kotenok,” Natalie replied coolly. “We’re a little intense.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> kotenok = kitten


	8. Chapter 8

Anna was, indeed, able to get her driver’s license that afternoon. She had no doubt that Natalie and Tony had more to do with the speed of processing than the copy of the police report in her hands. Still, it was nice to have something so normal back. And Tony surprised her further with a Stark Industries insurance card in her name. 

“As of today,” he announced over dinner, “you are an SI employee once more, out on medical leave until such time as you are cleared by both a medical and mental health professional to return to work.”

“But Tony,” she protested, “surely someone else is doing my job by now.”

“Anna,” his tone deepened in mock disappointment. “Surely you don’t think, in this very large, very important, very international company, that I have one or two openings in media relations at any given time?” He arched an eyebrow. “Besides, after what amounts to living in a cave for several years, I’m thinking your qualifications are going to be a little rusty. Maybe we need to start you somewhere a little lower. Like the copy room. Do we even have a copy room? Friday, do we have a copy room?”

Anna laughed at his teasing. “Thank you, Tony. You have been more than generous with me.”

Tony gently took her hand across the table. “You’re going to learn that I believe in being generous. It helps when I screw up. But it’s also how I let people know I care. I don’t always get the social cues; I don’t always have the right words. But I can be generous, and giving, and Pepper had me working on the rest. So, that.” He leaned back, evaluating her reaction.

Anna thought for a moment, wanting her words to be right. “I used to be a feeder,” she finally said. “I used to feed the people I cared about. Coworkers got their favorite flavor cake for their birthdays. I paid attention to new recipes my husband particularly liked or didn’t like. He knew I was happy when he had his favorite drinks in the fridge and I cooked his favorite meals for dinner. So I get what you’re saying. We all have things we do instead of saying “I like you, you’re important. I love you.” She very carefully studied her plate instead of Tony’s face as she said the last three words.

“I think,” Tony said, “with Pepper, she couldn’t hear the words in my actions. I tried to tell her once. I needed to be Iron Man to keep her safe because I loved her. Because I couldn’t imagine a life without her. Of course, I was struggling pretty hard with PTSD at the time and she was literally my lifeline. But then I thought I could give up Iron Man for her, and it turned out I need to be Iron Man for me.” He stopped.

“Of course you do, Tony,” Anna said. “Iron Man is part of your identity now. It’s not just a piece of armor, it’s the part of you that says ‘I care enough about the world around me to try to save it.’ Some people recycle, you fight off bad guys. Or good guys with bad intentions.”

Tony met her gaze. “You never fail to hit the nail right on the head, do you?”

Anna laughed. “And you thought my PR skills might be rusty.”  
***

Natalie insisted on walking with Anna to her therapist appointment. “I can walk with you, like a normal person, or I can follow you like a stalker, which may come close to violating my promise to Tony,” the redhead said. 

“Just let her come with,” Tony pleaded. “Nat’s a ninja and you’d never know she’s there, but it’d be weird for all of us if I had to kill her in your first week of soul bonding.”

So the women stopped for coffee in the lobby before leaving the tower and walking the three blocks to Anna’s appointment. Anna felt reassured by the other woman’s presence, but it wasn’t quite the step of independence she’d hoped for. “You’ll have lots of time to do things on your own, kotenok,” Natalie said between sips of mocha. “I do not mean to take anything away from you, but to be here your first time in case of unexpected anxiety.”

“I know,” Anna said. “And I appreciate you being here, now that we’re actually on the street. I hadn’t thought about the crowds. But just I want to get back to normal.”

“Normal is relative,” Natalie shrugged with a very Russian level of equanimity. “And really, what is normal about living with Tony Stark and his voice in the ceiling?”  
Anna laughed.  
***

The therapist was an older Omega woman with a lean runner’s build and a compassionate, attentive manner. Anna told her story, ending with finding both her soul bonds in the time since her rescue, and admitting their identities. Dr. Charlotte didn’t even blink. “Well, I suppose someone had to be bonded to Tony Stark,” she’d murmured. “You must be quite a lady to be the bond for two such strong personalities.”

“I think it’s more that the Universe knew we could all help each other,” Anna said. “Anyone who wasn’t Tony couldn’t have gotten me through the past week so smoothly. And Natalie is like this soothing well of calmness. But they are both also really hurt and damaged by their pasts, and they need someone who’s not part of their world to help them readjust. Someone who can help them heal by not being part of the ugliness they face as superheroes.” She told the doctor about her conversation with Tony about ways in which they each showed affection, and the woman recommended a book called “Love Languages.” Anna promised to look into it.

All in all, Anna thought the appointment went well, and Dr. Charlotte said she was doing well. “Give yourself time,” was the doctor’s advice. “Much like your weight, you can’t regain all of your life skills and independence again in one big chunk. It would be overwhelming and unhealthy. So set small goals – daily, weekly, and monthly – that you feel you can accomplish.” Anna set weekly appointments with Dr. Charlotte for the next two months, and they’d reevaluate her progress after that. She left with a prescription for a mild sedative for if she had trouble sleeping, but said that so far, she’d slept fine. “As your physical health returns, your body may begin to process your mental traumas at the expense of sleep. Let me know if that begins to happen.” Anna felt like she had taken a major step on her own in finding the right doctor on the first try, even if she hadn’t walked to the appointment on her own.  
***

Natalie joined Anna and Tony for dinner, and the two Alphas made a clear effort to make the meal pleasant. They had Stark Industries business in common, and the discussion was lively and interesting. Anna handled the dishes while the two continued to debate the timing of release for the new Stark phone, and then Natalie surprised both Anna and Tony by joining them on the elevator to go to the workshop, where Anna curled up on the couch with “The Five Love Languages” on her tablet, Natalie proceeded to give Anna a light pedicure with hot pink nail polish procured from the depths of her handbag, and Tony went to work.

When Anna woke sometime in the middle of the night, she was still on the couch in the workshop, covered with a blanket, and she could hear Tony and another male in the shop behind the couch. 

“Really, Rhodey-bear, you didn’t have to fly all the way in to check on me,” Tony’s voice floated over the sound of something mechanical. “I’m good.”

“You look good,” responded the unfamiliar voice, James Rhodes, Anna’s brain supplied. “You look more balanced than you have in… maybe ever? But tied to the Black Widow for the rest of your soul bond’s life? That was worth a face-to-face check-in, Tones.”

Anna continued to lie still and quiet, not wanting to intrude on the conversation.

“Wait until you meet Anna,” Tony deflected. “She’s worth having to manage Natasha-Natalie, whatever name the Widow wants to go by these days. And actually, you should see the Widow, too. Very un-Widow-like when dealing with Anna. Almost like a real girl.”

“This, I must see,” Rhodes agreed. “Did you at least deal with the fallout from Germany? Or is that going to be hanging over our heads the next time we’re all in the same room?”

“You know, we did have a mature, rational talk about that very thing, pookie bear,” Anna couldn’t help but grin at the nicknames. “Widow and I agreed there wasn’t really a hatchet between us to bury. But that if there had been one, we’d bury it for Anna. Oh! And I threatened her! Friday, pull up that footage! You aren’t going to believe this…” Anna drifted back to sleep to the sound of Tony chattering happily to his friend.  
***

The next morning, Anna formally met James Rhodes over coffee at the breakfast bar in the penthouse. “Anna Waycroft,” she extended her hand to shake, “reporting for Best Friend Inspection.” 

Rhodes laughed, rising from his chair to take her hand in his. “James Rhodes,” he responded. “Best friend in question, no inspection necessary. Please, call me James.”  
Anna moved to the coffee pot and poured herself a cup. “So, Tony called you?” 

James took a sip from his own mug before replying. “Yeah, after learning Nat was your other bond. It shook him a little.”

“A little?” Anna laughed. “He cursed in no fewer than six languages for ten solid minutes.”

James smirked. “Yeah, that’s just a little with Tony. Nothing exploded, right?”

It turned out James was managing the upstate Avengers facility for Tony while on medical leave from the Air Force. While Tony’s robotic prosthesis had allowed his friend to walk again, it wasn’t enough for the military to consider him medically fit for active duty. “I passed my 20-years in a few years ago anyway, so I technically could retire. But if I stay in, no one else gets to take on the Iron Patriot armor. If I retire, they might make me train someone else to fly it. And that’s not a battle Tony needs to fight right now,” he explained to Anna.

“You’re a very good friend,” she replied.

“That’s what he needs,” James said seriously. “Good friends willing to look out for his best interests.”

“I’ll try,” she said, understanding the unspoken ‘shovel talk.’

“Do that.”


	9. Chapter 9

The days settled into a sort of routine. Anna would work to strengthen her body and refresh her mind, sometimes going on errands or to appointments, and she gradually took over meal preparation responsibilities. Tony would work, attend meetings, and occasionally jet off to the west coast for a day on business. Natalie would usually have dinner with Anna and Tony, sometimes staying longer, sometimes leaving for her own apartment shortly after the dishes were cleaned and put away. 

Natalie and Anna tried a shopping outing one weekend, but the experience was both overwhelming and exhausting for Anna, and the two ended up back in the penthouse for a Disney marathon featuring Frozen, Big Hero 6, and Inside Out. Tony banned them both from the workshop that night for singing “Do you want to build a snowman?” until he claimed his ears were bleeding. Anna woke up to a tiny mechanical snowman on her bedside table the next morning, and at breakfast, she brushed Tony’s cheek with the lightest of ‘thank you’ kisses.  
***

Two weeks after meeting Natalie, Anna was curled up on the couch with Han Kang’s The Vegetarian when Tony, Natalie, Don Watkins, and Detective Stinson. She rose, her shoulders tensing. “Detective Stinson, Mr. Watkins, this is a surprise,” she greeted. Tony took her hand and sat beside her on the couch. More disturbing, Natalie took the other hand and settled behind her on the arm of the furniture.

“Mrs. Waycroft, I’ve come with some news on your case,” the detective hovered, then sat at Tony’s invitation. He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “Let me first apologize for taking so long to get back to you. We wanted to be absolutely certain before we moved ahead.” Anna nodded, not really understanding until he spoke again. “This morning we arrested your husband on charges of conspiracy to commit murder, attempted murder, kidnapping, and false imprisonment for his part in what happened to you.” He took a breath as Anna’s head spun. Tony shot a look to Natalie, who went to get Anna a bottle of cold water. As she sipped, the buzzing in Anna’s ears stopped and her vision returned to normal. 

“Thank you,” she said to Natalie, and then to Stinson. “Thank you, for telling me. I suppose you have a pretty strong case, then?”

“We do,” the detective said. “We found your DNA and Crosby’s DNA on your rings, and your husband’s fingerprints on the rings and his DNA on the seal of the envelope your wedding ring was in. It helped immensely that there was a recording of you opening that box, and of us opening the envelope. He won’t be able to argue anyone tampered with it. We also tracked a payment from him to Crosby, half before you disappeared, half after Crosby sent him a couriered package to your home. We can’t prove that was your rings, but the timing fits. We were unable to prove any knowledge or involvement on the part of Donna Barnes.” Anna lifted an eyebrow and the detective continued, “Ms. Barnes was never legally married to your husband and has retaken her maiden name.” Anna swallowed back anger and revulsion and sat back against the couch cushions, flanked by Tony and Natalie.

“So, now what?” she asked finally.

“Mr. Waycroft has not confessed yet to any wrongdoing. He will have a preliminary hearing in the next few days and there will be a determination as to whether he can be allowed out on bond. Then, we will assist the District Attorney in preparing for his trial. Unless, of course, he confesses and pleads guilty at the preliminary.” Stinson laid the process out for her.

Don Watkins interrupted. “I’d like to speak with the DA in charge of this case. We can make a case for your continued endangerment, Anna, and hopefully have bond denied. After all, if he thought you were deceased all this time, as evidenced by his application to have you declared dead, having you suddenly alive is problematic for him.”

Anna was grateful for Natalie’s insistence in accompanying her anywhere outside of the tower the past few weeks. “Do you think I’m in danger now?” she asked the detective.

“We haven’t found anything recent to show he might try again,” Stinson assured her. “But it no doubt took him time to arrange the first kidnapping; it would take him time to make another contact capable to getting to you. Especially living where you do now.” He eyed Tony and Natalie speculatively.

Tony cut into the detective’s detecting. “We’re grateful to you for coming by in person, detective,” he rose and extended his hand to shake. “Watkins is going to be my contact on this for anything further, and he’ll schedule any interviews you need from Anna or myself.” Skillfully, he shepherded the taller man to the elevator, which opened on cue. “Just let him know when the preliminary hearing will be and we will have a representative there.” Stinson boarded the elevator, willing to be shown out, and Tony turned back to the lawyer and the women. “We can file civil charges, as well, right? Now that he’s been formally charged with criminal behavior?”

“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves, Tony,” Watkins gently reined him in. “We’ll see how the criminal case plays out, then, if he has a leg left to stand on, we’ll finish him off. Assuming that’s what the lady wants?” Tony and the lawyer both turned to Anna, who was being hugged rather aggressively by Natalie.

Anna straightened her shoulders and sat up straight. “The lady wants,” she agreed. “He did this, he’s going to pay. And pay. And maybe pay some more. But right now,” she bared her teeth and Tony raised his eyebrows. “This lady wants that bitch out of my house. Can you do that?” 

The lawyer nodded. 

“Hot.” Tony commented.


	10. Chapter 10

Of course, that night Anna had her first nightmare. She woke up sweating, disoriented, and her throat raw from screaming. “Ms. Waycroft,” Friday called, raising the lights to a dim glow, “You are safe and in Stark Tower. Mr. Stark is in his bedroom. The time is 4:37 and today is May 26, 2017.”

“Thank you, Friday,” Anna gasped, reaching for the water on her nightstand. She drank, pushing back wet hair from her face. “Ick.” She wiped her hands, only to find the sheets damp with rapidly-cooling sweat as well. As her breathing and heart rate returned to normal, she decided there was nothing to do but get up, shower, strip the bed, and start her day.

When Tony woke, it was to the smell of freshly-baked blueberry muffins. He stumbled into the kitchen bleary eyed, going straight to the coffee maker. As he took his first life-giving sip, he turned around and his eyes popped wide open. The breakfast bar, dining table, and coffee table were all covered in muffins. Anna was seated at the bar, peeling a muffin from its paper baking cup. He sidled over to her carefully. “So, what’s up, buttercup?”

“Had a bad dream. Try this.” She broke off a piece and held it to his lips. Tony dutifully opened his mouth and moaned as lemon zest and the sweet tang of blueberries hit his tongue. 

“Ohmigod, gimme,” he made grabby fingers at the rest of the muffin, which she cheerfully handed over before sliding off the chair to take another batch out of the oven. “How many did you make?” He demanded, though it came out pretty garbled through the muffin crumbs.

Anna surveyed the landscape of muffins. “Maybe enough for the legal team. I guess I should stop. And call Nat to come pick some up on her way to work.”

Tony pulled her back to a seat at the bar and sat next to her. Peeling a second muffin slowly, he asked: “must have been some dream.”

Anna wrapped her hands around her own mug of coffee. “The first one I’ve had about my kidnapping, so… yeah.”

“Do you want to talk about it yet?” Tony phrased the question so she’d know they would talk about it eventually. 

Anna shrugged. “It was just a flashback dream. I was walking home from the subway, and then I was in the back of a van. I felt… weighted down. And then I was in the apartment, chained to the wall, and I went into heat.” Her hands shook slightly, so she set her coffee mug down. Tony clasped her hands between his, to keep them warm and to give her a point of contact. “In the dream, when he was raping me, it was like I wasn’t really part of it. I wasn’t there. I just knew it was happening. So,” she pulled her hands back. “Like I said, not as bad as it could have been.”

“But bad enough, sweetheart.” Tony wanted to touch her so badly. He wanted to wrap her in his arms and tell her it would get better. “It sounds like your brain is finally starting to catch up to being safe enough to start unpacking what you’ve been through. I wish I could tell you it will be easy, or that there’s a way to get through this quickly. But it takes as long as it takes, and what I can tell you is that I will be right here for you through it. If you need to bake muffins, by all means, bake muffins. But if you need to wake me up, Anna,” and now he did reach out a hand and brush her cheek with his fingertips. “Please wake me up.”

She met his serious brown eyes with damp blue ones and nodded. “Okay.”

“Okay,” he said. “Do you want to see Dr. Charlotte today?”

“No,” she said. “I have an appointment tomorrow. This may have just been a thing based on the meeting yesterday, and really, I feel okay. Not great, but okay. I’ll just get these down to Natalie,” she trailed off.

“Fine, but not all of them! Those are really good muffins!”  
***

Apparently, Legal agreed with Tony about the muffins. Natalie regaled Anna with a tall tale of near-fisticuffs over the last one during their walk to see Dr. Charlotte the next morning. Anna had dreamed again that night, her husband taking place of her kidnapper as the one chaining her to the wall and then raping her during her heat. So Anna was a little bleary-eyed and beginning to show dark circles under her eyes again, when she felt she had just banished them. She had a productive session with Dr. Charlotte, however, and left with some techniques for clearing her mind both before bedtime and post-nightmare. “And naps are your friend, my dear,” the doctor advised. “Do not be afraid to disrupt your sleep cycle with naps. You are still healing and can use all the rest your body will give you.” She’d also enjoyed the last two muffins from Anna’s baking spree, which Anna had smuggled out from under Tony’s nose.

On their walk back, Natalie made a suggestion based on her own research and perusal of Anna’s childhood scrapbooks. “How would you like to visit someplace guaranteed to be relaxing and simultaneously make Tony crazy?” The redhead arched a brow and threw a playful half-smile at Anna.

“How crazy are we talking?” Anna asked.

“Dummy with a fire extinguisher-level insanity,” Natalie replied. By now, Anna had heard the highlight reels of all of Tony’s workshop and SI antics.

“I’m down,” Anna replied, and Nat grabbed a cab. “Do I get a clue?” she asked after the redhead gave the driver the address.

“Only that I promise you are going to love it,” came the reply. And she was right. Anna practically vibrated with excitement as they disembarked at the ASPCA on 92nd Street. 

“Ohmigod,” she squeaked. “How long do we have to spend?”

Natalie laughed. “They close at 7, and we can volunteer all afternoon.”  
***

They were in more trouble when they left that night at 7 than Natalie had initially planned. “Tony really is going to go crazy,” she warned Anna as they rode an Uber back uptown. “Maybe like ‘Rhodey taking his suit’ crazy.”

“Oh,” Anna giggled, “but how can he stay mad at this face?” She made ridiculous puppy-dog eyes at Natalie, and then smooshed the chops of 70-pound black and white pit bull sitting next to her and had him make actual puppy-dog eyes at Natalie. Nat smiled to herself, gently stroking the soft ears of her own unexpected purchase; a blue, female littermate to Anna’s new dog. Laika, unlike her namesake, was not a “barker,” Natalie discovered over the course of the afternoon, but was a silent shadow, following the redhead throughout the facility as she completed assigned chores, sitting on command, and demonstrating the intelligence that shone in her golden eyes. Achilles, as her brother was named, was by far the more boisterous of the two, but was also warmer and more accepting of people in general. Laika had been difficult to adopt out, as she was standoffish with most people. But of course, she’d taken to Nat like a fish to water. And Achilles had what the ASPCA people called “black dog syndrome.” He was a great dog, but got looked over time and again because people were either afraid of black dogs or just didn’t pay as much attention to them. The pair had been at the shelter for two weeks when Anna and Natalie became victims to their particular brand of puppy love.

Anna was talking to Achilles as the Uber pulled up to the tower. “Now, you have to be really super nice to Tony. Show him what a good dog you are, oof!” The tiny woman was nearly pulled off her feet by the dog as he bounded out of the car to water the grass in front of the tower. Laika waited patiently as Natalie tipped the driver and stepped out. “Come,” the redhead commended quietly, and the blue dog stepped daintily onto the sidewalk. The women and dogs rode the elevator to the penthouse and emerged cautiously. “Friday, where is Tony?” Anna asked the eye in the sky.

“Right here ladies,” Tony spoke as he came around the corner from his bedroom, looking freshly showered. “Did you have a lovely… what the HELL is that?” Achilles wagged so hard he bent in half and whacked himself in the nose with his tail. Laika sat patiently at Natalie’s feet, awaiting her mistress’ command.

“Tony, Tony, Tony! We went to the ASPCA to volunteer and this is Achilles and that is Laika – they are littermates and we kind of adopted them.” Anna started out strong and petered out between wrestling Achilles’ leash and Tony’s eyebrows creeping higher and higher until they threatened to disappear into his hairline. 

“What part of ‘I’m going to take her someplace to volunteer and feel useful and good about ourselves?’ turns into me having two dogs in my penthouse?” Tony turned his attention to Natalie. “And I notice the one you intend to take home with you seems much better behaved than the one you intend to leave here.”

Nat might have been struggling not to laugh. “There were…” she paused, looking for just the right words… “circumstances.” She finally concluded. When he simply gawked at her, she added, “and there might have been feelings.”

“I am so screwed.” Tony sighed. Achilles broke Anna’s hold on his leash and raced for Tony, jumping up and licking his face in unabashed joy. “Oh, ew!”  
***

Over dinner, which Tony had prepared and kept warm for whenever they returned, Tony settled into frequent sulky side-eyes at the dogs, who behaved remarkably well once the humans sat at the table. Both dogs settled far enough away to be clearly not begging for food, but close enough to watch their new mistresses. 

“I want training on that beast,” Tony finally declared. “Complete Canine Good Citizen Certificate.” He shook a finger at Natalie. “And no faking the paperwork, either. A real trainer, real behavior modification. He can’t be jumping on Rhodey. Or Pepper.” His eyes bugged out at the thought of muddy pawprints on his CEO's designer wardrobe.

“Of course, Tony,” Anna conceded. “He’s excited right now, to be out of the shelter, but he’s a good dog.”

Tony continued, “He cannot come into the lab. That’s a hard line. Too many things can be damaged by stray dog fur, and there are chemicals that could hurt him if he decides to taste them.”

Anna bit her lip. That one was going to be harder, as she spent a lot of her evenings in Tony’s lab with him. “Okay,” she finally agreed.

“And what are you going to do with yours if you have to travel?” Tony turned to Natalie, who arched a brow. “And do you think you’re bringing it to work with you? Is that a thing we allow?”

“Actually,” Natalie replied smoothly, “I thought I would get her certified as a therapy dog and yes, bring her to work with me. There are plenty of your own employees who suffer PTSD from 9/11 or the Chitauri attack that do have therapy animals and are allowed to bring them to the office as long as the animals do not disrupt the work. Studies have actually shown that animals in the workplace can increase productivity. And did you know you have a dog-walking patio on the tenth floor just for those workers?”

Tony blinked. “So it’s going to stay here if you travel,” he stuck to the one point she hadn’t answered. Natalie only smiled. “Of course it is,” Tony muttered.  
But that night, with Achilles’ head heavy across her feet in bed, Anna slept soundly, no nightmares.


	11. Chapter 11

Apparently, the dogs at the ASPCA received breakfast at 6:30 on the dot. At 6, Anna vaguely felt Achilles jump off the bed. At 6:15, he nosed her arm from his seat at the side of the bed. At 6:30, he started grumbling, mumbling, and finally prodding her with his nose and tiny half-whines.

“Okay,” she finally threw off the covers and sat up, patting his head. “Do you need to go out?” She was mentally prepared to ride the elevator in her pajamas and socks down to the tenth floor to walk him. Natalie had said the patio was surrounded by a tall plexi wall, so it wasn’t too windy and there were small shrubs for the dogs to ‘water.’ But when she stood up, Achilles dashed to the kitchen and stared down at his food bowl. She shuffled after him and he gave her a sideways glance that said clear as words “c’mon, lady, make the food happen!” Anna dumped two measuring cups of food into the dish and started the coffee pot as the dog scarfed the kibble.

She poured her own cup, attached the leash to the dog, and they boarded the elevator. Walkies were much more tolerable with coffee kick-starting her system. And the patio on the tenth floor was actually really nice. Lots of grass, the promised shrubbery, a supply of bags and a sign reminding humans to “pick up after your dog!” Someone had left some tennis balls in a basket and there was a table and chairs for people to socialize while the dogs wandered. It was high enough up that traffic noise was slightly muted, but not so high up that acrophobia would set in. Achilles spent a happy 30 minutes sniffing and leaving his own marks “I was here!” and after she finished her coffee Anna tried one of the tennis balls with him. He was happy to chase it, picking it up in his mouth and tossing it in the air or slapping it with his paw to make it bounce, but he had no idea what “bring it” or “fetch” meant.

“Someone just didn’t have time to work with you, did they boy?” Anna fondled his ears and scratched his big, blocky head as she talked and the dog ate up the attention. “Ready to go back up?” She asked rhetorically, and the dog shot to the door and sat, looking back at her like “What? I know ‘go’ means ‘get to the door.’”  
“Huh,” Anna mused, gathering the leash and getting back on the elevator. “Smarter than you look.”

By mid-morning, Anna had done her workout, read the paper, and made contact with a trainer willing to come to the tower. Friday helped her have a bed, toys, treats, and more food delivered, and she was working with the dog to try to figure out what he knew. With treats as motivation, he would sit, down, stay (until Anna went out of sight), and come. He would fetch some things in exchange for a treat, if he could figure out what she wanted him to bring. Tony watched her work for a while, but they quickly figured out he was a massive distraction, and he went down to the workshop. 

The trainer arrived that afternoon, and gave her more strategies. “You’ll want to work up to being able to get him to obey with your roommate in the same area,” the trainer said. They were working on the patio, so the man didn’t know she lived in Tony Stark’s penthouse. Natalie watched from the table where Anna had sat that morning, sipping her own coffee and monitoring Laika, who was minding her own business. Anna continued to work with Achilles, and by dinnertime, Tony was able to walk into the penthouse nearly unaccosted. Achilles started a gallop toward the elevator when he saw Tony emerge, but Anna called “sit!” and the dog skidded to a seated position at Tony’s feet and stared up at him in adoration, tongue lolling out one side of his mouth.

“That’s a lot of animal,” Tony shook his head. “You’re sure about this?”

Anna dumped some kibble into the dog’s bowl and stepped neatly out of the way as Achilles raced for his dinner. “He’s learning,” she replied. “And working with him gives me something constructive to do while we wait for the hearing, and then the trial.”

Tony tilted his head and studied her across the dinner table. “Plus, I think you’re getting some sun taking him outside all the time. Looks good on you.”

Anna blushed.   
***

That week, Achilles walked with her to therapy with Dr. Charlotte, who was charmed by the now (mostly) well-mannered dog. Anna talked about working with Achilles every day, and Dr. Charlotte agreed with her that it was healthy to have something to focus her reviving energy on, and that both the physical work she put in each day and the presence of the dog in her bed at night could help stave off the nightmares Anna had experienced. “But sometimes, your mind will need to process subconsciously what you’re not ready to talk with me about consciously. So do expect occasional bad dreams, dear. Just don’t let them take over.”

Anna also talked about Tony’s reaction to Achilles, and Dr. Charlotte laughed. “Well, it’s another male in his territory,” she explained. “And one who is competing for your time and attention.”

“Our relationship isn’t really like that, though,” Anna protested.

“Maybe not right now, Anna,” Dr. Charlotte said gently. “But you are an Omega living with your Alpha soul bond. And by all accounts, Tony Stark is a healthy, virile, Alpha male. You are already good friends, and you complement each other in that he provides for your current needs and you are providing for his need for companionship he can trust. You don’t have a secondary agenda for being a part of his life. Eventually, when you are healthy again, you are going to see him as a potential mate. It’s in your biology. And I have no doubt he sees you as a potential mate already, but is respecting your situation, your physical and mental health, and letting you come to him in your own time and on your own terms.”

Anna leaned back, stunned. “I hadn’t even thought,” she stammered. “I … What if I’m never ready?” She turned big, scared eyes to the doctor.

“Oh, honey,” Dr. Charlotte got up from her chair to sit next to Anna and patted her hands where they clutched Achilles’ leash. “You are already doing so well. You have come so far in dealing with everything that happened to you. And you are a lot smarter and more stable than most of the people I see. I am telling you right now, I have no doubt that you are going to move past this and be able to go on to have a full, healthy, happy life. Whether that includes taking Tony Stark as your lover or keeping both him and Natalie as platonic soul bonds is entirely up to you. But you will eventually take another lover into your bed, Anna, of this I am sure.”

Anna wiped tears from her cheeks and Achilles settled his big head on her knee and whimpered. “It’s okay, boy. I’m okay.”

Dr. Charlotte sat back. “Indeed, you are. Some healing steps are small, baby steps. And some are big leaps forward. You’ll know when you’re ready to take the big leaps, dear. And it doesn’t have to be anytime soon.”  
***

Tony gave himself points for noticing that Anna returned from her appointment in a sober mood and that she seemed sad for the better part of the afternoon. And he gave himself bonus points when he retreated to his room and ordered Friday: “Dial Nat.” When the woman came on the line, he spoke, “Our girl seems depressed. Movie night?”

“I’ll bring takeout,” came the response. And an hour later, Anna was surprised when Natalie stepped off the elevator bearing freshly made sushi, Thai, and her mani/pedi bag loaded with nail polish. “I was bored,” announced the redhead, “and thought Achilles could use a visit from his sister.” Laika had tiptoed off the elevator at Nat’s heels, carrying a rope toy in her teeth. She shook in in her brother’s direction, and the pair began an energetic game of tug, the noise from which brought Tony peeking out of his office. 

“What fresh mayhem is this?” he waved his arms at the dogs.

“It’s called tug,” Natalie replied coolly. “And don’t complain, I brought Khao khluk kapi.”

“Oooh,” Tony beelined for the kitchen for plates and silverware. “Are we doing movie night?”

Natalie rolled her eyes, then turned to Anna, who watched the proceedings with bemusement. “Have you seen The Force Awakens yet?” Anna shook her head. Natalie nodded once. “Plate up.” And she proceeded to steer Anna to the less-spicy dishes and explain which sushi rolls contained what.

After eating, watching the movie, and receiving a new coat of color on her fingers and toes, Anna plead exhaustion and took Achilles to her room for bed. Tony and Nat fist-bumped and cleaned up the evening’s detritus. 

“So, what happened?” Nat asked quietly while they were both in the kitchen.

“No idea,” Tony confessed. “She came back like that from the shrink.” He scraped plates and placed them in the dishwasher. “But look, I’ve been putting off a trip for SI and Pepper’s really on me to go. It’ll mean a week or so out of the tower. Can you…”

“Consider it done,” Natalie replied. “She doesn’t need to be alone just yet, even with the dog and me in the building during the day.”

“Just don’t redecorate or anything while I’m gone, okay?” Tony couldn’t help but tease.

Nat gave him a (for her) gentle punch in the shoulder, called her dog, and was gone.  
***

Sunday mornings were lazy at the penthouse, but no one gave Achilles that memo. Thus, Anna was up at 6:30, the dog fed, coffee brewed and enjoyed on the tenth floor patio, and at loose ends by 7 a.m., her conversation with Dr. Charlotte still rattling around in her mind. Recalling Tony’s reaction to her last baking spree, she pulled out the muffin tin and got to work. “Just one batch,” she told the dog, who watched the proceedings curiously. “Then maybe – Friday, are there any recipes for homemade dog muffins?” Upon receiving confirmation and checking their stock of peanut butter, Anna thought she’d try her hand at a batch for Laika, Achilles, and the other dogs she’d met on their walks.

By the time Tony emerged from his room and stumbled into the kitchen, Anna was finishing her second batch of dog biscuits and shutting the oven down. She placed a mug of coffee and a plate with two muffins on it at the breakfast bar and Tony took a seat, sipping gratefully. “To what do I owe this pleasure?” He asked lazily as he broke off a piece of muffin a popped it into his mouth.

“You got me out of my head last night,” Anna responded. “Whether you and Natalie planned it or not doesn’t matter, it worked. And there’s some stuff I’d like to talk to you about when you have some time.”

“For you, sweetheart, I have time,” Tony turned serious eyes to her. “What’s going on?”

Anna sighed and settled in with water and a muffin of her own. “It’s about the Alpha/Omega thing, which is a difficult thing to talk about for me.” Tony waited patiently, and quietly, which was a surprise. “I was talking to Dr. Charlotte about us, and about how we have a good relationship right now – a really good basis for a strong friendship. And she brought up down the road, when I’m healthy again, and through all of this, and she basically said she expected we would both eventually want to take it further. You know?”

Tony cut through the vagueness. “You’re talking about sex.”

Anna felt as though her face would catch fire. “Yes.” 

Tony sat back in his chair, giving her the illusion of space. “Okay, first, let me say this. I do not expect anything from you. Dr. Charlotte doesn’t know me, but it sounds like she knows my reputation. And sweetheart, at one time my reputation was right. But that’s not me anymore. You know this.” Anna nodded. “Good.” Tony stood and paced a few steps away. 

“She’s right, you’re right, that I like you. I consider you a friend. I’ve introduced you to my best friend. He likes you. He’s a better judge of character than I am. Nat likes you, and she’s the best I’ve ever met at cutting through bullshit to see who a person really is. But I’m letting this unfold as naturally as I can, given our circumstances. Yes, I want to wrap you up in my blankets and take care of you. You’ve been through something horrible, and you’re still going through it, and more and more it’s parallel to my situation with Afghanistan and Stane.” Anna started; she had forgotten that Tony’s kidnapping was the result of someone who was supposed to love him, too.

“But because of that desire, because I’m aware of it, I’m purposely pulling back and giving you as much space as you seem to want. I don’t want to push you into anything. I don’t want to push you away.” Tony stopped and came to stand in front of Anna again, hands in his pockets. “I’m good at screwing up, sweetheart. And you feel too important to screw up. I wear your words; you wear mine. That means something to me. And if you decide it means we are going to be friends, then that’s what we’ll be. Do I hope that someday you might want to try being more? Yeah, that would be awesome. Because you’re a smart, amazing, beautiful woman. And yes, you’re an Omega and that turns my Alpha instincts on. But I control those, they don’t control me.” He took a breath. “After all, you might decide Natalie is more your speed.”

And Anna burst out laughing.

“Oh, thank God.” Tony sighed, sitting back down. “That was a real concern, you know. Two Alphas soul bonded to one Omega? You might decide you’re off stick for good.”

Anna laughed until tears streamed down her face and the dog was dancing at her feet in concern. She took a few deep breaths and patted his head. “Oh, my God, Tony.” She wiped her eyes with a napkin. “You’re a delight. And the universe knew what it was doing when it brought us together now. Because you’re right. I do know you’re not the playboy anymore, and you of all the people on the planet understand what I’m going through, and for so many reasons I feel safe with you. Not the least of which is just because you are you and you care enough to give me the space I need right now.”

She sat up and looked into his eyes. “I don’t know how long it’s going to take. And even thought Dr. Charlotte says she’s sure I’ll eventually be ready, I’m not so sure. But if there’s ever anyone else for me, it’s going to be you.” And very slowly, she leaned forward. Tony held absolutely still as she pressed her lips softly to his and gave him a promise.


	12. Chapter 12

Douglas Waycroft’s preliminary hearing finally arrived that week. Don Watson alerted Tony, who advised Anna and, with Natalie, convinced her she did not need to attend. “It’s not going to do you any good, kotenok,” the redhead said. “I will be there and I will report back immediately to you.”

“Okay,” Anna reluctantly agreed. But the morning of the hearing she was distracted and irritable to the point where Tony retreated to his workshop, keeping one of Friday’s monitor’s up where he could see Anna in the penthouse.

Natalie returned just before noon, thank all the deities. She brought egg drop soup and lo mein and served lunch with quick efficiency before sitting at the table with Tony and Anna, who felt like she was about to crawl out of her skin with anxiety

“Bond denied,” were her first words, and the other two released sighs of relief. “Now eat your soup and I will tell you.” Anna picked up her spoon and Natalie continued. “The crime itself is severe enough in nature that the bond would have been set very high. Add in premeditation, his actions in declaring you dead after the fact, and the judge was leaning our way. His lawyer argued long-standing ties to the community, his family,” she actually put in air quotes, “and career reputation. But when the DA brought up that Anna was in the process of regaining possession of her home, which is still in her name, and that Mr. Waycroft would legally have no place to go if released, it made him seem like quite a flight risk. So, no bond.”

Anna almost choked on a bit of egg. “Trying to get my house back did that?” She wheezed after taking a sip of water. 

Natalie smiled like a cat with canary feathers in its teeth. “I would call it instrumental to our case, yes.” And she finished her lunch.  
***

Tony waited until dinner the next day before broaching the topic of his road trip. “So,” he started over a plate of homemade lasagna, “Pepper apparently needs my illustrious presence at a couple of the SI locations, and I was thinking of making one long, multi-stop trip instead of several shorter one-and-two-day trips.”

Anna glanced up at him, unperturbed. “That sounds smart. When do you leave?”

“Well, don’t rush me out the door or anything,” Tony shot back. Anna cackled. “Actually, I was waiting until after Waycroft’s hearing to go. I wanted to be sure you’d be safe before I left for a week or more.”

Anna thought for a moment. “I appreciate that, Tony. But, if you’d talked to me, I’d have probably said it wasn’t necessary to delay your trip. I have Natalie, and Judy, and now Achilles is here with me at night. It’s not like the tower is lacking in security, and I don’t go out by myself.”

Tony tilted his head and regarded her much the way the dog did when she gave an unfamiliar command. “You’re stronger than I give you credit for, is what I hear you saying,” he started. At her nod, he continued, “but you’re not taking into account my own particular brand of paranoia.” Anna put down her fork and gave him her full attention. “I lose people I care about with alarming regularity,” he said. “My track record speaks for itself. So if I’m hesitant to jet off to other countries while there is the remotest chance your ex may get out of jail and come after you, I need you to try to understand that a little bit.”

“So, it’s not me, it’s you,” Anna tried to tease.

“See!” Tony exclaimed, “She gets it!” He turned to the dog. “That’s why this one’s a keeper, dog. She totally gets it.” Achilles padded over, tail wagging in joy. Anna rewarded the dog with a pat on the head and commanded him to down. Tony turned his focus back to her. “You have no idea how much harder that has been to explain to – well, pretty much everybody in the past. I’m a neurotic mess sometimes, sweetheart. I can’t help it. And you being able to see it and accept it, well…”

“Tony Stark speechless?” Anna guessed. 

“Got it in one.”

So she didn’t get bent out of shape when he told her he’d like Natalie and Laika to move in with her while he was gone. “A week, ten days, I’m really not sure,” he said. “It’s been a while since I’ve been out, so it could stretch to two weeks, but I’m really hoping not.”

“Whatever you need, dear,” came her teasing reply. Of course, she’d miss him terribly; he was such a larger-than-life presence, and his absence would leave a huge hole in the liveliness of the penthouse. “I may have Judy over a couple of times, but the first time I’ll make sure Natalie is here to manage the security protocols.”

Tony had met the woman Anna called her second mom when the women had met for lunch the first week Anna had been with him. The two had taken each other’s measure and come away satisfied that each had Anna’s best interests at heart, and left Anna feeling like a three-year-old. She’d kept them separate ever since, having lunches with Judy on the dog patio after adopting Achilles, since Tony wouldn’t likely be caught dead on the tenth floor, and not just because he would have to wade through a horde of his own employees to get there. Really, there was only so much mother-henning Anna would stand for, and the two of them together tipped the scale.

So Tony took off the next morning, Natalie and Laika arrived in the afternoon with a small piece of luggage, and the women settled into a similar, but much quieter, routine as Anna held with Tony. Both dogs woke, fed, and walked at 6:30, and Anna picked up some of Natalie’s exercise routine and added it to the yoga she had been doing. “When you’re ready, we’ll add self-defense to your strength training,” Natalie offered. Anna usually made breakfast while Natalie showered so the redhead could head down the elevator to work by 8. Then Anna would shower, work with Achilles, and manage light housekeeping or random chores until it was time to cook dinner. She was getting bored, though, and giving some thought to contacting Pepper to see what jobs she could take on without actually leaving the penthouse.

“Give yourself a couple more weeks,” advised Dr. Charlotte. “You’re almost there, and that’s when it’s especially tempting to rush the healing process.” So Anna waited. She did have Judy over for the night, and she and Natalie got on like a house on fire. Recalling Tony’s assessment of Natalie’s ability to judge the character of a person, Anna felt good having three people so solidly in her corner. And to her delight, the Monday starting of Tony’s second week away, she received her divorce decree. Given the circumstances, it had been expedited, and she was officially a free woman. Two days later, Don Watson stepped off the elevator with Natalie at lunchtime and handed her the keys to her house. “It’s empty of occupants,” he said. “Let me know what you want to do with it.”

Anna was shocked and delighted. She had her house back! And then unease set in. Would she want to live somewhere her ex-husband had lived with his ‘wife’ and their children? Did she want to leave the penthouse? Did Tony want her to leave the penthouse? She didn’t think so, but that was something they’d have to discuss when he returned. Could she sell the home she had grown up in, though? She carried all this with her to lunch with Judy, and then talked it out again with Dr. Charlotte. 

Judy understood her reluctance to sell the house. “Anna-na-na, your mama loved that little house. And it’s the last thing you have that truly ties you to your childhood and your parents. You don’t have to sell it even if you don’t feel you can live there again. After all,” she waved a fork at the penthouse interior, “I’m not sure I’d ever leave if I had this place as one of my choices. But it comes part and parcel with a pretty alpha Alpha, if you know what I mean. And you need to decide if you want that part of the package.” Anna nodded. 

Dr. Charlotte was more subtle. “You have options,” she said in her calm manner. “The house is paid for, I assume?” At Anna’s nod, she continued, “you can use it as a rental property, keeping it as a retirement investment. Or, you can leave it empty but keep it well maintained and keep it as an escape location if things get too intense at the tower.” It had been one of Anna’s early concerns, that Tony would be surrounded by Alphas and Avenger business that would place her in danger and stress her out. 

“That’s no longer a concern,” Anna assured the doctor. “I guess it all comes down to whether I can trust the relationship between Tony and myself regardless of whether we wind up as a romantic couple.”

“And what are your thoughts on that?” Dr. Charlotte pushed. “How have you felt while he’s been gone?

“I’ve missed him terribly,” Anna admitted. “I got used to the couple of dozen times a day that we would touch casually. And used to his voice in the morning and at night.”

“And when is he coming back?” 

“Tonight,” Anna said softly. “He’ll be home tonight. And I think I want to try, you know, to be with him.”

Dr. Charlotte smiled. “Talk to him first,” she advised. “Let him know what you are thinking, and let him know that you might back out at any point. From what you’ve said, I don’t expect he’ll have a problem with that. But if he does, he’s not ready. And neither are you.”


	13. Chapter 13

Anna set up a light meal for that evening, not sure when Tony would arrive and how tired or hungry he would be after traveling. She did have a surprise for him; Achilles’ Canine Good Citizen Certificate was framed and wrapped in a red ribbon. Woman and dog had worked hard on his manners, and she was adding up the hours he needed to become a certified therapy dog so she could keep him with her at all times. 

She took special care with her own appearance, too, washing and brushing out her now shoulder-length hair, applying touches of makeup to her eyelids and lashes, and putting on a floaty summer sundress she had picked up while out with Judy one afternoon. The woman had taken her to only two specific shops, one for lacy underthings, “because you are still a lady, and a lady needs nice things, dear,” and the other a small, girly boutique where they had been the only shoppers and Anna had picked up the dress and a few other feminine tops that floated around her figure and would fit as she changed sizes. The additions to her wardrobe had made Anna feel like she’d taken another big step back toward life, and she’d retired most for Friday’s initial athletic wear purchases. Except the leggings. Leggings had become a fashion and Anna was all on board with that trend

Tony stepped off the elevator just after 5 p.m. and Anna uncurled herself from the couch. For a moment, the two simply stood and looked at each other. She noticed he looked tired, travel worn and people-weary. He thought she looked like a vision. And not the floating magenta one that lived upstate. He snapped to life and crossed the room to her in fast steps. She lifted her arms and took one step to meet him in a full-body hug, tucking her face into the crook of his neck and breathing deep. 

Tony ran his hands up her back and neck, over her bare shoulders and tucked his fingers into her hair as he cupped her face. “You look amazing,” he breathed. “You smell amazing.” He took half a step back. “You are glowing, are you glowing?” When she laughed, he tucked her back against him and swung her around. “I missed you. I missed your laugh. I missed your cooking. I missed seeing you every day.”

Anna leaned back. “I missed you, too,” and she caught his eyes, telegraphing her move as she leaned in and kissed him. He inhaled, and his arms tightened around her shoulders and back when she deepened the kiss instead of breaking off. His lips began to move against hers, and when she angled her head and parted her lips his tongue swept in and tasted before retreating. 

He leaned back. “Wow.”

Her smile was one of feminine satisfaction. “Hi.” She stayed in his arms for another moment before stepping back. “Come, sit, have a drink. Tell me things and I’ll tell you things.”

Tony took a moment to readjust his way of thinking about the woman who’d just kissed the daylights out of him. “Yeah, only you go first. Yours is bound to be more interesting.”  


They settled on the couch facing each other, drinks in hand. Tony kicked off his shoes, which Achilles promptly gave thorough nose inspection. “Hey – no chewing! Your whole hide can’t afford those shoes.” The dog sat and looked at Tony to say “as if. I am so far above shoe chewing,” and Anna popped back up off the couch to grab the framed certificate. 

“One Canine Good Citizen award, sir, as requested,” she snarked. 

“Wow, good job! Well done! Does that mean he can babysit the kids?” Tony teased back.

“Not yet,” Anna responded. “Nanny certification is another 900 hours.”

Tony laughed and set the frame on the coffee table. “Seriously, thanks for this. I know it was a lot of work for you.”

Anna shrugged. “Actually, it was good to have something constructive to focus my time on. I have a lot of it on my hands these days. And I really would like to introduce him to one of the bots, maybe up here, not in the lab, just to see how he’d react.”

Tony squinted at the dog. “Maybe. We’ll see. What else happened while I was gone? You went shopping, I see and wholeheartedly approve,” he gestured to her dress with his glass.

“Thank you, I did.” She told him about her outings, relating the meeting between Natalie and Judy with anecdotes and impressions that had him laughing, and about receiving her divorce and the deed to her house.

“Huge news!” Tony exclaimed. “We must celebrate!” He jumped off the couch and went to the alcohol bar. “Wait, can you have a drink? One glass of white wine, maybe?”

“That should be fine,” she assured him with a smile. And a little less inhibition might make the rest of the conversation easier. She accepted the half-full glass and toasted with the handsome man who had returned to sit right by her tucked-up feet. 

“To freedom,” he said. 

“To starting over,” she replied, and they both sipped.

“The house brings up a thing,” Anna started. 

“Have you been there?” Tony asked. “Have you seen it?”

“I haven’t,” she said. “That’s part of the thing.” She hesitated, and took another swallow of wine.

“Okay, so there’s a thing,” Tony took her feet in his hands and stretched her legs across his lap. “Tell me about the thing.”

Anna took a deep breath and blurted, “I don’t know if I want to move out of here.”

Tony blinked. “I would hope you don’t, especially after that welcome-home kiss.” He rubbed one hand up and down her smooth calf. “I am hoping that kiss meant you’re considering a much-less-than-platonic bond with me,” his fingers teased the skin of her knee under her skirt. “And I look forward to a little more consideration, if you’re leaning in that direction.” His hand backed down to her ankle and rested there, bracketing the joint.

Anna had to remember to breathe. “Okay.” She blinked, shaking off his spell. “Whew, okay. Yes. There are a couple of things, and the house brought them up.” She set her wineglass aside. “I had to think about us, about our relationship, when I was thinking about now that I have someplace to go. And yes, I decided I really want to explore what’s between us. I might not be ready, physically, for everything, but I want to try. And I put on this dress and I kissed you with that in mind.” 

Tony remained still, his hand warm on her ankle. “I told you before and I meant it, I’m not going to push you, sweetheart. Kissing is a good start. Kissing like we kissed earlier is a fantastic start, and I’d like to do a lot more of it before we go any further. The dress is gorgeous, and I love it, and I love you in it. I love that you have curves now that I can see under it and feel under my hands. It means you’re healthy again. But the dress stays on tonight, can we agree on that and take that pressure off of you?”

Anna sighed. “You are incredibly good at this, Tony. How did that happen?”

“Pepper trained me,” he replied automatically, then Anna was delighted when a blush stained his cheeks. “I never said that. It didn’t happen.”

“Your secret is safe with me,” Anna laughed.  
***

They talked and laughed more over dinner, Tony regaling Anna with tales of woe and perceived woe from his SI tour, complete with voices and acting out dramatics. 

She told him about her hesitance to visit her house, and he promptly offered to go with her. “We’ll at least check it out, see if there’s anything left of yours, if there’s damage, what needs to be done so that even though you won’t be living there,” he leered playfully, “it can be maintained in good condition for whatever you decide to do with it.”

Anna blushed at his leer; flirting was a little heady for her. “Okay, so maybe tomorrow

Tony clapped his hands together. “That’s what I like about you, sweetheart. Once you decide to do something, you just go ahead and do it. No waiting around for you!” Anna laughed and began to clear the table. Tony disappeared for a moment, and when she came back out of the kitchen, the lights in the living room were low, the coffee table had been pushed aside, and Achilles was nowhere to be seen. “I put the dog in your room for right now because I’d like very much to dance with you,” Tony extended his hand in her direction and Anna slowly took it. He led her to the living room and slow instrumental music began playing in the background. They faced each other, and Tony studied her face. “Shy? Now?”

Anna blushed again. “I don’t really know how to dance.”

Tony’s voice was low and sexy. “Just follow my lead, sweetheart. I’ve got you.” And he took her fingertips in his hand as he placed the other on her back. She slid her free hand over his bicep, feeling the hard muscle underneath bunch below her touch. “There you go,” he whispered as he brought their bodies a hairsbreadth apart and began to move, first just swaying her to the music, then, once she was sure on her feet, moving them in smooth steps across the floor. After several songs, he said, “I love dancing. It’s a publicly acceptable form of making love.” Anna threw her head back and laughed, until Tony pressed on her back and closed that last tiny distance between them. Then she gasped. “Tell me it’s not,” he growled into her ear.

And now that she could feel the muscles of his thighs guiding hers, the heat from his chest against her breasts, and see his pulse pounding just above his collarbone, she had to agree. Even though they were both on their feet and fully clothed, dancing with Tony was as intimate as she imagined making love with him would be. Her breath came fast and shallow and she whispered his name before pressing an open-mouthed kiss to his jaw just below his earlobe. He groaned, and his mouth met hers. Her arms wound around his neck and he kept her pressed tightly to his body as they continued to sway. His hands explored her back, her hips, and she felt light touches on her buttocks as he learned her new shape. Hers learned the texture of his hair, the shape of his jaw beneath his beard, and the strength of his shoulders. Their lips learned each other’s mouths, cheeks, and jawlines, tongues flirting with pulse points and hotspots until both were breathing heavily and Tony was holding her up because her legs no longer would. 

He settled with a soft kiss in her hair. “We need to stop for now, sweetheart. Take a break. Come sit with me,” he left the music playing and the lights low as he sat on the couch and pulled her to sit tucked into his chest. “God, you’re amazing.”

She turned unfocused blue eyes up to his. “I could say the same thing. I was scared I would be, well, scared. But the past months we’ve been living together without this makes it easy to trust you. And you’re so damn smooth.” They both chuckled and Tony hugged her tightly to him.

“You’re one of the only women I’ve spent months just talking to,” Tony confessed. “Even Pepper, it was all SI business and then relationship added to that. But you got to know me first, and I got to know you. So, maybe that’s part of why you’re not scared and I’m not rushing. There’s nothing pushing either of us, except us.”

“Pretty and smart,” Anna teased. “My favorite combo.” Tony roared with laughter.

They kissed and talked and kissed a little more until Achilles whined to be let out. Anna took him for a walk, and Tony finished cleaning up the kitchen. When she returned, he sent her to bed. “I’m messed up from time changes and wired, sweetheart. I’ll probably be up in the lab most of the night, if not all night.” So she kissed him sweetly goodnight and closed the door to her room.

Tony rode the elevator to the workshop, totally revved. “Wake up kids, daddy’s home!”


	14. Chapter 14

The visit to her house gave Anna all the feels. Natalie had decided to tag along, and both dogs were in tow. Judy offered to come, and Anna agreed, since she had known the house as long as Anna. So it was a party of four humans and two canines currently exploring the two-story house with white siding and postage-stamp yard on East 39th in Brooklyn. There were four tiny bedrooms, two of them created in the past five years by converting the attic, Anna discovered. “I wonder if that makes the house more valuable?” she mused. Tony was sure it did, since there was still a basement for storage. 

Judy wept when Anna discovered her mother’s china wrapped in paper and stored in a box in the basement. Natalie hauled the box up the narrow stairs, and the women unpacked a few of the pieces to see the set seemed to be intact. Anna was pleased to find two more boxes of her own keepsakes in the basement, and decided all the boxes left needed to come upstairs where they could be unpacked and gone through. “Not today, Tony,” she assured the man when he looked decidedly twitchy. “This will be a girls’ day out job for Natalie and myself, and Judy if she likes.” Judy, of course, liked.

Tony went carefully through the kitchen and structural aspects of the house, climbing out a dormer window in the attic to walk the roof and giving Anna several anxious moments until he was safely back inside. “The wiring should be updated,” was his verdict. “Everything else looks good. If you decide to rent it, I’d put down inexpensive carpet to protect the hardwood floors and offer a little more insulation.” Judy and Anna both moaned at the thought of covering up the original hardwood. “Ladies,” Tony cajoled. “Have you seen what renters do to a place? My place upstate has concrete floors because of the renters.”

“Tony,” Anna shot back, “Your renters are liable to be carrying around live weaponry.”

“Point,” he conceded. “Just upstairs, then. Trust me on the insulating factor.”

Anna was leaning more toward using the house as a rental property having walked through it. While it still held sentimental and physical value, she wasn’t repulsed by it as she had feared, now that it was empty of the possessions that made a house a representation of its occupants. She was relieved by her decision, but also sad that she would no longer be living in the house where she’d spent her entire life prior to her kidnapping. It felt like another loss, in spite of being her own decision and the fact that she was happy in the penthouse with Tony.

Judy caught her before the tears could fall. “Hey, honey, it’s okay.” The older woman wrapped her in a tight hug. “You’ll get through this. You’ve got a lot to look forward to, and the house will still be here if you need her later.” Anna nodded, her face buried in Judy’s shoulder. She felt Tony’s warm hand on her back, and Natalie threaded her fingers through Anna’s. When Achilles nosed the other hand, she realized she was surrounded by her home; home was these people, not the building in which they were standing.

“Thanks, guys.” She sniffled and stepped back. “I just needed to let it go.”

Natalie started singing the tune from Frozen and Tony threw up his hands, headed for the door. Anna laughed, “I didn’t mean it!” She scrambled after Tony and the dogs followed her out. Judy and Natalie paused to set a date to come back and deal with the half-dozen boxes the women needed to go through, and the party departed.  
***

Later that evening, Anna was watching Tony rework a design by hologram rather than reading the book open on her lap. She loved his hands. They were strong and powerful, skilled and capable of extremely delicate work. The focus he gave to his projects belied the seeming attention deficit manner in which he moved from task to task. His brain was simply working on too many levels too face for his hands to keep up. Finally, he seemed satisfied, announcing: “Friday, save and send to Rhodey.” Ah, so a design for the Avengers then.

“Tony, have you thought about having children?” Anna blurted out.

“Well, that’s a hell of a conversation starter,” he turned cautious eyes to her. “What are you thinking, sweetheart?”

“It’s just something I thought we should talk about,” Anna confessed. “It wasn’t an issue for me before, and I was fine marrying a Beta when I had a high-demand career and I would still, I think, be fine going back to having a career and pushing myself there if kids are off the table. But with you, kids might be an option if my heats do return the way the doctors seem to think they will. So I thought, maybe we should talk about it.”

“Huh,” Tony ran a hand through his hair and stood, going to the bar for a drink. “Want one?” He offered, but Anna waved her glass of water at him. He returned to sit by her, pulling her feet into his lap and covering them with one warm hand. “Any timetable for the return of your heats?”

Anna shook her head. “Physically, I’m a clean bill of health, except for my thyroid, which is not unusual for a woman my age. My mom had thyroid disease, too. I just take a medication each morning that makes up for what my body doesn’t produce.”

“So, any time.” Tony took several slow breaths through his nose. 

“Hey, don’t panic,” Anna reached out to touch his arm. “I didn’t mean to make you panic.”

“Not panicking,” Tony said. “Just thinking. It’s been a long time since I’ve had to think about this. Because, yeah, same deal. Before you, kids were simply a no-go. I never wanted ‘em, none of the women I was with ever wanted ‘em, I – confession time – have never spent an Omega’s heat with a woman.” Anna’s eyes widened in surprise. 

“Look, sweetheart, Anna,” Tony turned to face her. “I’m not sure I’m father material. I have kind of a crap example to follow, I drink too much, I get lost in the workshop for days, I’m freaking Iron Man. Do you know what a target any child of Tony Stark’s would be? We’ve both been kidnapped, can you imagine that happening to a kid of yours? Think about that and tell me you’d want to have my babies.” He wound himself up, angry, frustrated, and hurt bleeding through each word.

Anna sat quietly for a minute. “I’d want to have your babies if you were willing to give them to me. And here’s why I think you’d be a great father, Tony.” She made sure she had his full attention. “One: You know from your crap example what kind of father you don’t want to be.” She’d heard the Howard stories by now, and agreed. “Two: You ARE freaking Iron Man. Howard worked on a device then put a kid he didn’t know from Adam’s housecat in it to turn him into Captain America. You built a suit of armor and refuse to let anyone else have it because you WANT the responsibility Howard couldn’t risk taking himself. You think any kid wouldn’t be lucky to have Iron Man as an example to look up to? How about Tony Stark? The man I know who is generous enough to bring in an employee who hasn’t worked a day in over five years to his own home and nurse her back to health, without expecting anything in return except maybe, MAYBE, if she doesn’t mind, friendship? And three:” Anna was kneeling on the couch, getting right in Tony’s face. “You’d have me.” She gentled her voice to a soft whisper. “And what in your experience with me so far makes you think that I wouldn’t drag junior down to the workshop if you were lost in science and haul you back up by your hair if I needed to? What makes you think that I wouldn’t have your back against any and all comers when it comes to protecting and safeguarding our baby? Make Nat and Rhodey the Godparents, and we’ve got the safest kids in the world. They’ll be smart, and pretty, and able to defend themselves if they need to. And of course, you’ll have them GPS tagged before they leave the womb, won’t you?”

“I’d try,” he admitted, finally getting a word in. “Have I mentioned that you’re exceptionally hot when you get ragey?” He cupped her face in his hands and brought her mouth to his. “So sexy.”

She laughed against his lips. “You have a thing for strong-willed women, don’t you?”

He licked a line down her neck to her cleavage. “It may be a trigger.” He mumbled into her breasts.


	15. Chapter 15

Anna found whisker burn on her neck and upper torso as she showered the next morning. Tony had driven her crazy on the couch last night, then sent her to bed before reaching third base. They were so good together, she didn’t want to wait anymore. “Let me take you out,” Tony had soothed when she reached for him as he tried to slow things down. “You need to see what happens when the paparazzi gets wind of my location, and be sure you can handle it.”

So tonight they were attending some gallery opening, and Pepper would be in attendance as CEO and a patron of the arts. Tony let the woman know he would be coming, “Thank you for the heads-up, Tony” and bringing Anna. “You need to talk to her, Pep.” For her part, Anna was more intimidated by the high heels she’d be wearing than by seeing her former boss and her soul bond’s ex-girlfriend.

The dress was a silver, above-the-knee sheath that showed off her tan and her glossy chestnut hair. Tiny black stitching gave the silver a delicate floral pattern. She had a fresh cut and style, and Natalie had helped her with full makeup. The shoes were strappy monstrosities with what the redhead had called a ‘modest’ three-inch heel. Three inches might as well have been six to Anna, who obviously hadn’t walked in heels in years. “It’s not like riding a bike,” she’d argued when Tony gifted her with the dress and shoes. “I’m going to fall on my damn ass.”

“I’ll just have to stay by your side all night so I’m there to catch you,” he replied coolly. “It’s a fabulous ass; I refuse to let you bruise it.” He scuttled out of the room when she threatened to throw one of the shoes at him. Which led her to discovering the red soles on the bottom of the shoes, and rolling her eyes so hard she almost strained something. She refused to look at the label on the dress. But she did spend part of the afternoon practicing walking in the heels. Maybe she could handle three inches. They did do fabulous things for her legs.  
***

The gallery was brightly lit and paparazzi lined the street as the limousine pulled up. Tony exited, scanning the crowd and offering a short wave before leaning back down to hand Anna out of the low vehicle. She emerged and he wrapped her hand protectively around his arm as she blinked to adjust her eyes. “Smile, sweetheart,” he reminded, and Anna managed a tremulous smile that grew stronger when she looked at him. She took a breath. “Ready?” he asked. She nodded, and they sailed into the crush.

A month ago, she’d had to be in a nearly-empty boutique to shop. Now, she was elbow-to-elbow with strangers on the arm of the most sought-after man in the room, and she was only slightly nervous about her shoes. Anna marveled at her progress, and when Tony caught a moment between introductions, he told her he was proud of how far she’d come. “But if you need out, just tell me.” She nodded. And there was Pepper.

“Oh, Anna, it is so good to see you!” the taller woman embraced her and Anna hugged back. “You look fantastic!” Pepper was sleek and elegant in something black and structured. Her own heels, Anna noted, were certainly six inches, which gave the CEO even more height over both Anna and Tony. “Is Tony taking care of you, or is it the other way around?” 

Anna laughed. “He’s definitely had the lion’s share of the taking care of so far,” Anna assured her former boss. “And I hope to be on more equal footing going forward.”

“So there is a forward,” Pepper dished for Anna’s side of the story, even with Tony standing right there and listening.

Anna threaded her fingers through Tony’s. “There’s definitely a forward.” She said firmly. “Negotiations are in full swing for long-term momentum.”

“Wow,” Pepper caught her breath. “I knew you were special when you worked for me, but I had no idea how special. I truly wish you both every happiness. You deserve it.” She made eye contact with Tony. “You both deserve it.” She kissed Tony on the cheek and said to Anna: “Let me know if you ever want to come back to work for me directly. I could use someone as bright and talented as I remember you being.” And then she was gone.

Tony and Anna didn’t stay much after that, having achieved both their purposes for the evening. Anna handled the crowd with aplomb and speaking with Pepper again had her itching to return to work. Tony had planned dinner and dessert at a restaurant atop a nearby high-rise, and Anna was charmed by the meal out and his attentiveness to her.

“Mr. Stark,” she teased as he spoon-fed her chocolate mousse. “Are you romancing me?”

“Maybe,” Tony teased back. “Are you romanced?”

“Well,” she drew out a long pause. “Let’s just say at this point I’m a sure thing.”

Tony signaled for the waiter.


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HERE BE SMUT. You won't miss any plot if you skip the chapter.

Anna was proud of her restraint in the limousine. She sat next to Tony, his warm body a line of heat along her side, but their only contact was his fingers threaded through hers. He watched her through hooded eyes, which she could just see glittering in the darkness. The kissing and touching they had done since he returned home played through her mind, adding to the tension running through her body. 

They pulled into the garage and Tony thanked the driver and politely escorted her to the elevator, his hand a barely-there heat at the small of her back. And they might have made it off the elevator with their dignity intact, too, if he hadn’t skimmed one finger up the column of her spine left bare by the low back of the dress. She whirled and plastered her body to his, catching his lips in a hot, open-mouthed kiss. Her arms twined themselves around his neck and clung, and one leg came up to try to wrap around his.

His hands, those clever, skilled hands she’d admired so many times, skimmed down her hips and thighs to find bare skin below the narrow hem of her dress. When she moaned and wiggled in frustration, he shoved the material up her legs to grasp the backs of her thighs and help her wrap her legs around his waist. She felt the rigid evidence of his arousal against the searing heat between her legs and ground against it, tipping her head back with a sigh. Tony took the advantage to run lips and tongue down her neck to suck at her collarbone and nip the sensitive spot where her neck met firm shoulder muscle.

The elevator opened and Tony carried her into the penthouse still wrapped around him, her head tucked into his neck and mouthing his earlobe. He made it to the couch, and lay her back before leaning above her. “You say stop at any point, and everything stops, sweetheart. You tell me if you need me to slow down, too, okay?”  
Anna stared up at him in a haze of lust. 

“I need to hear the words, Anna. I need you to know you are in control here,” Tony firmed his voice to try to reach her. This had the potential to go so wrong if she panicked.

“I understand,” she finally whispered. “Stop means we stop. Slow down means give me a minute to process where I am and what’s happening. I want you, Tony. I want this, I promise.”

Tony leaned down and gave her a gentle kiss. “I don’t want to hurt you.”

“You won’t,” she assured him. He stood and stripped off his suit coat and tie, then knelt and took one of Anna’s feet in his hands to unbuckle her shoe. He kissed the sole of her foot, her ankle, and up to her knee before setting the foot back on the couch and reaching for the other. When both feet were bare, he stroked his hands up her legs. “Your bedroom or mine?” he asked.

“Achilles is in mine,” she reminded him.

“Mine it is,” and he scooped her up in his arms and carried her to his room, where he set her on her feet at the foot of a California-king size bed. A single lamp had been left burning and provided a soft glow for the two lovers to see each other. 

Anna faced Tony and began working the buttons on his dress shirt as he removed his cuff links. “Is there anything I need to know about the Arc reactor?” she asked gently.

Tony froze. “Just that there’s some pretty unpleasant scarring from where it was removed. There’s a plate where the hole in my sternum used to be, so I’m not breakable. But it’s not pretty.” He watched her eyes for any sign that he should leave a shirt on.

“We all have scars, Tony,” she said, kissing the skin she exposed, even when she reached scar tissue. “I just don’t want to accidentally hurt you, either.”

Tony stripped off his shirt and undershirt, then ran his hands softly up and down her arms while he stood for her inspection. Anna ran her fingers lightly over the scarring, then placed a kiss just over his heart before leaning into his chest and capturing his mouth with hers. Tony threaded his hands into her hair and cradled her head as the passion built back up between them. When they needed to breathe, he trailed a line of kisses down her neck and turned her to face the big bed. His fingers reached for the zipper, which started at the hem of her dress and ended just above her waist. As the material parted, he placed kisses down her spine and watched goose bumps rise in a trail behind his lips. “So sensitive,” he murmured, finally parting the fabric of her dress and letting it hang from her shoulders, leaving her backside completely bare but for a tiny triangle of lace. He ran his hands over the gentle curve of her ass and swept up her back to brush the dress off her shoulders and down her arms. The fabric fell to the floor and he wrapped his arms around her waist, kissing her shoulder and neck as he drew her back against his chest. “You fit here,” her murmured against her skin. “Right in my arms, like this.”

Anna turned, arching her back so her breasts rose against his chest and running her nails lightly over his back and shoulders. He shuddered against her and groaned. “Like that?” she whispered, a smile in her voice.

“More, later,” he groaned. “Want to taste you. Want to lay you out and taste every inch of you.”

Anna tucked a foot behind her and levered herself up onto the mattress, bringing her breasts to Tony’s face. “Pick a place to start, love,” she said huskily. And he did.

Tony devoured her breasts with open-mouthed kisses and suckles, teasing her nipples to hard points and making Anna cry out with the sensation. He laid kisses across her chest and down her arms, nibbling at her fingertips as his hands learned the shape of her body. He tongued broad strokes up her legs, stopping just short of the soaked juncture between her thighs and made her moan in frustration when, rather than continue, he flipped her over to place tiny kisses and nibbles over her buttocks while his fingers danced across her back. He teased at the lace of her panties, then nudged her knees apart and knelt between them, hovering over her while she lay on her belly. “This is how I will take you when you are in heat,” he growled into the shell of her ear. “I’ll cover you and make you mine and, if you decide you’re ready, I’ll put my baby in your belly.” He threaded his fingers through hers, holding her in place and testing her limits. When she moaned and bucked her hips beneath him, he backed off, satisfied. Standing at the foot of the bed, he made quick work of his own shoes, socks, and pants, as he watched her roll over, a dazed look on her face. Good to know, he thought with satisfaction. He nudged her ankles back apart with his knuckles, and ran his hands up the inside of her legs in one smooth motion. Grasping the edge of her panties, he slid them down her legs with the same smoothness, then tucked her ankles over his shoulders and rode her legs down his back until he was a breath away from heaven.

A quick glance up showed no hesitance on Anna’s part, so Tony bent his head and nuzzled the curls that shone with her wetness as he placed an open-mouth, suckling kiss against her entrance. She nearly arched off the bed. He chuckled against her flesh and placed one hand on her belly, thumb tickling into her trimmed pubic hair, and slid the other hand under her hips, tilting her pelvis to meet his mouth. And he feasted.

Anna had occasionally wondered what it would be like to have all of Tony’s genius dedicated to her pleasure. She had severely underestimated him. He stroked her folds with broad sweeps of his tongue, then dipped into her to tease out more of her arousal. He uncovered her clitoris and suckled at it, bringing her nearly to orgasm, before backing her down with smooth, soothing licks. His hands provided pressure that kept her grounded and his fingers teased and stroked her skin until she was begging for more. She lost all sense of time, And Tony seemed content to stay right where he was, sucking and licking and nibbling until she lost her mind. “Tony!” she cried after he’d taken her almost to completion and then backed down the fourth time. “Please, please, more. I need, oh God.”

He looked up at her face, the brown of his eyes swallowed by dark pupil, and smiled a Cheshire cat grin. He slid his hand from beneath her and teased at her opening. “You need this, sweetheart?” He kissed her clit lightly. “You need something inside you?”

“I need to come, Tony, please!” she cried, beyond shyness, beyond thought. And when he closed his mouth back around her clit and slid that finger inside her, twisting and crooking it against her front wall, she simply exploded, arching into the pressure of his hand on her belly, legs tightening around his shoulders, and fingers digging into the coverlet as her inner muscles clamped and spasmed around his finger. She coated him with more fluid, and he lapped it up in soft strokes as she rode out her orgasm.

When she lay panting and limp against the bed, Tony straightened her legs and crawled up next to her, gathering her into his arms. “That was beautiful, sweetheart,” her murmured against her sweat-slick skin. “You did so good. You’re so amazing.” He tucked her against him and spoke softly until she began to respond, her hands drifting up his arm and chest to pull him into a kiss.

“You’re amazing,” she said, shifting her legs against each other. “And I think I’m just getting started with you.”

“Oh?” Tony’s brows rose. Anna slid one leg over his hip and rolled him to his back to rise above him. “Oh. Okay, yeah.” She threaded her fingers though his and he helped her balance as she slid her wet folds along his hard length, then he hissed as she ground down a little. She leaned forward, her mouth sealing to his, tongues mating as she pressed his hands to the pillow and tilted her hips to slot him into place. “Ah,” Tony sighed as he felt her body swallow the head of his cock. “Slow, sweetheart,” he cautioned. “You’re so very tight.” He shifted his hands to her hips to help guide her as she rocked back and forth on her knees, easing his way inch by slow inch. 

By the time she’d accepted half of his length, he was sweating with the effort to not thrust up into her. He stopped her movement to give them both a moment to breathe, pulling her down against his chest in a gentle hug. “Just rest there a second,” he said. “Just a second,” his hands glided up and down her back, then soothed her trembling thigh muscles. When he felt her relax, he gave a slow roll of his hips, driving deeper into her but at a gentler angle. She sighed, and turned her face to kiss him lazily. “Yeah,” he whispered. “There you go,” and he rolled his hips again until she was once more moving against him, driving herself down onto him. He felt her wetness once more coating his shaft and pressed her back into a sitting position. She seated fully, sliding all the way down until he felt his tip brush her cervix, making her gasp. “Okay?” He asked, and she nodded. 

He ran his hands up her arms to caress her breasts, and she began riding him in earnest. He placed one hand on her hip to help steady her and used the other to tease her nipples and caress her soft flesh. When her rhythm began to stutter he settled both hands at her hips, stretching one thumb to brush over her clit. As she reached for her second orgasm, he let go and allowed his own to begin working its way through his body. Closing his eyes, he focused on the intense sensation of her body, so hot and wet, surrounding his own. Her small hands against his chest, resting there for balance without fear or revulsion. Her thighs, bracketing his hips, the muscles there strong and healthy. And her voice, calling out in breathy moans as she climbed the peak of pleasure. And when she called out his name in her orgasm, his body responded, spilling his seed into her and pulling from him a harsh moan signaling his own completion.

She collapsed, her weight slight against his chest, and Tony brushed her hair back from their faces with gentle fingers as they caught their breaths. He kissed her softly and rolled out of the bed to warm a washcloth in the bathroom. He washed himself, then rewet the cloth and returned to her, wiping her down gently and tucking her beneath the covers. “I’ll walk the dog,” he offered, kissing her brow. “You sleep.”

She murmured a quiet thanks and was out before he left the room.


	17. Chapter 17

Anna woke in Tony’s bed, Achilles nosing her fingers where they stretched over the side. She stroked the dog’s ears and took stock. She could hear Tony breathing slow and deep close by. Stretching slowly, she felt a slight twinge in her low abdomen, but otherwise felt fine. “Okay, boy, shhh,” she soothed when the dog whined. She slid carefully out of the bed, noting her lack of pajamas with a sense of awkwardness and the dog bed by the bedroom door with a warm, fuzzy feeling. She grabbed her dress and shoes, then padded down the hall. While the dog ate, she put away last night’s finery and pulled on leggings and a t-shirt. Slipping on shoes, she was ready to take the dog for his morning business when he gamboled into her room after eating.

On the elevator, Anna couldn’t keep the smile off her face. Last night had been everything she had hoped for with the added bonus of no panic attacks or hesitancy on her part at all. This, she mused, was how it should feel with the right person. Tony’s consideration of her past hadn’t dampened the fires for their passion, and her acceptance of his scars had allowed him to accept her touch. Their broken edges fit together and smoothed each other out.

When Achilles was done inspecting every bush and blade of grass on the patio, Anna took him back upstairs and pointed him to his bed. Though he looked mournful about it, he settled, and she crawled back under the covers to curl against Tony’s back. The man cracked an eyelid. “Wha’timesit?” he mumbled, rolling to gather her firmly against his chest. “Early, she whispered. “Go back to sleep.” He already had.  
***

At a far more reasonable hour, Tony opened his eyes and blinked into the morning light. One arm was pinned beneath Anna’s neck, her hair ticking his elbow and her breath warming his wrist. He was splayed on his back, and ridiculously content to stay there if nature weren’t calling. He extricated himself from her warmth and gave the dog a side-eye stare as he walked past to the bathroom. “Stay,” he ordered, and Achilles huffed and lay his head back down. 

Coming back out of the bathroom feeling even better and having tamed his morning breath, he peeled back the sheet and blankets covering Anna, intending to rediscover her inch by inch. He frowned when he discovered her dressed, and whipped back the covers. Anna shot up, blinking startled eyes around her before landing on Tony in puzzlement.

“You have clothes on,” he said mildly. “You will notice I have no clothes on.” She blushed. “One of us is inappropriately attired.”

Anna’s brain caught up and she leaned back on her elbows. “I had to take the dog out. You would be very inappropriately attired for such an activity.”   
“Yes,” Tony conceded, “but now you are back in my bed. Where clothing is definitely uncalled for.” His eyes twinkled at her.

“Well, I guess you’re going to have to fix that for me, then,” Anna offered, lifting her arms to help. Tony made quick work of the leggings and top, flipped the covers back over them both, and made slow work of bringing them both to ecstasy.  
***

Over a late breakfast, Anna asked Tony about his plans for the day. “I need to go down to the office and meet with Pepper while she’s here,” he said. “There’s not a lot of time when she’s on this coast these days, and we need to put our heads together about some of the business from my trip now that she’s had time to read all my reports. We might be doing some light restructuring.”

Anna thought for a moment. “I’d like to see if I can get an appointment with Pepper before she leaves, too. I want to talk to her about what she might have in regards to a job, assuming she wasn’t just being nice last night.”

Tony spoke up: “Friday, get Anna an appointment with Pepper and let us know when it will be.” To Anna he said, “Pepper is always nice, but she’s never says something just to be nice. If she said it, she meant it.”

Friday came back: “Miss Potts can see Ms. Waycroft at 2 p.m., before your meeting, Boss.”

Anna scrambled. “I’m going to need a suit.”

Tony called after her as she ran to her room. “Dress shop on the fifth floor!”

Anna rolled her eyes. Of course. Was there anything that wasn’t housed in the tower?  
***

Promptly at 1:55, Anna presented herself in Pepper’s secretary’s office. She’d found a gorgeous navy Elie Tahari dress that would be perfect for any office and fashionable enough to impress Pepper. She was ushered in and Pepper greeted her warmly. “I was just refreshing my memory of your major projects and accomplishments from your time with us before,” Pepper said.

Anna had spent a solid hour doing the same herself, and was able to converse intelligently about the details of work, the people who had collaborated with her, and her overall level of satisfaction with the end result. “That’s one of the things I liked best about working with you, Anna,” Pepper said at one point. “Any constructive criticism I could come up with, you had already considered and there was a solid reason for things being the way they were. I want to be clear, you’re not here interviewing for a job so much as we’re talking about which potential job I want to place you in, and whether you’d be interested in it. You’ve definitely got a job, okay?”

Anna relaxed slightly. “Thank you, Ms. Potts.”

“Please, call me Pepper,” the redhead offered. “If I go the route I’m thinking, we’re going to become pretty close.”

“I’m not available to relocate,” Anna said quickly.

Pepper laughed. “I figured that after seeing you and Tony together last night. It’s fine. What I’m thinking is more of a telecommute, work-from-anywhere-Tony-is type job anyway.” And she was off and running, outlining a new position that would liaise between the Avengers, SHIELD, and SI, outlining the technology supplied to the other organizations so that R&D expenses could be applied appropriately and Accounting could be managed a little easier. “Right now, Tony foots the bill for many of those developments himself,” Pepper explained. “And he doesn’t need to do that now that the Avengers and SHIELD fall under the Accords and can be legally expensed. We’re going to take some of that burden off of him,” she concluded.

Anna smiled. “So, a little challenge. No huge deal. Get Tony to tell me what all those projects in the lab really are and metaphorically wrestle Friday for the invoices for everything he orders.”

Pepper laughed once more. “I knew you’d get it. Seriously, though, you could probably get most of what you need from Rhodey and Agent Coulson. You haven’t met him, but he’s a pleasure to work with. Sometimes difficult to reach, but he has the Koenigs who assist him with administrative work on occasion.” She rose. “So, I can count on your help?”

Anna stood and offered her hand. “I’m going to discuss it with Tony, of course,” she said. “But I am definitely interested.”

“I’ll email you details and a salary offer by tomorrow morning,” Pepper promised, opening the door to reveal a lurking Tony. 

“My two favorite ladies!” He opened his arms wide.

“Tony,” they both intoned, each arching a single eyebrow.

“What, what!” he sputtered. “Less than an hour together and you’ve cloned!”

Anna caved and sent him a smile full of mischief. She kissed him on the cheek and slid past. “I’ll see you upstairs.” 

Tony caressed her arm and watched her leave. Turning to Pepper, he caught her in a smile. “What?” he repeated.

“You’ve got it bad,” she said, following him into the office and closing the door.


	18. Chapter 18

Anna outlined the job Pepper wanted her to take on over dinner that night. “You know, she’s right,” Tony mused. “We could turn a lot of what I’m doing personally into billable work I’d be doing for SI. It puts things above-board in a way that can be supervised. And since I’m only making things as we need them, there’s not a weapons stockpile to worry about. It makes it too prohibitively expensive for anyone else to try to contract SI for the same products and keeps all the designs and supplies right here with me. I like it.”

Anna said, “My understanding is that Pepper hopes to achieve a revenue-neutral state with SHIELD and the Avengers supplies. It won’t cost them any more than it absolutely has to cost.”

“And you know what,” Tony focused on her. “I trust you to keep it that way.”

“If I do my job right, you won’t have to just trust me, Tony,” Anna assured him. “There will be spreadsheets and accountants capable of backing me up.”

“Ack! Spreadsheets!” Tony pretended to gag. “I’m an engineer, not a bean-counter. Just make it right, my love.” He rose from the table and kissed her.   
***

True to her word, there was an email from Pepper waiting on Anna’s tablet the next morning. Anna swallowed audibly at the salary, then read closely to the detailed position description and expectations. There was a little more to it than Pepper had outlined in their meeting; she also wanted Anna to write short briefing papers to the Board on any new technology developed, its planned use and production rate. She ran that past Tony over breakfast. 

“It’s because I initially hid the Arc reactor,” he said. “I left the Board out of the loop for months on that one. But at the time, I was CEO. Pepper has a right to protect herself and the Board from another nightmare like that. I might not like it, and there might be times when I push back at you on it, so you’ll be earning your salary there. But it is for the good of the company.”

“What happens between us personally if you have to push back at me professionally?” Anna asked, and it was a good question.

Tony studied her thoughtfully. “Can you put it away and come to bed not mad?”

Anna responded: “Can you put it away and not sleep in the workshop?”

“Deal,” Tony said, sticking out his hand.

“Deal,” she agreed, and kissed him until they had to abandon breakfast and go back to bed.  
***

Anna signed the employment contract and delivered it to Pepper’s office that afternoon, interrupting a discussion between the CEO and Tony. 

“I’m glad you’re both here because I want to address one point in the job duties,” she started.

“Go ahead,” said Pepper after meeting Tony’s eyes and receiving a shrug. He didn’t know what Anna was planning.

“If there is a new technology that Tony deems weaponizable, I want to be able to restrict my briefing paper to eyes-only: yours and the Chairperson of the Board. Not the full Board, not even electronic. It will be hand-written, two copies only, and Tony or I will deliver those copies.” Anna said firmly. SI is no longer a weapons manufacturer, but some of what Tony creates for the Avengers is weapons. I don’t want any risk of anyone else getting their hands on those ideas or technology from anything that comes from me.”

Tony turned wide eyes to Pepper. “I had no idea,” he insisted.

Pepper considered, then nodded. “That’s really smart, and the kind of thinking I expect from you. Protect Tony, protect me, protect the company, in that order. Good job, you just created your first policy.”

Anna blinked. “This was a test?” 

Pepper rushed to assure her. “No, not at all. I hadn’t even considered what you just pointed out. But it’s good thinking, and it’s why I want you in this job. You’re going to consider all the angles and make sure everything’s covered.”

Anna breathed again. “Okay then. I’m going to go call James and let him know that he’s going to owe me a bunch of paperwork.”

“Oh, he’ll love that,” Tony laughed as she sailed out of the office.

Pepper’s next email contained Agent Phil Coulson’s phone number.  
***

Anna still reserved her mornings for working with Achilles. It was fun, and the dog needed the attention. She spent her afternoons going through back records on Avengers expenses, trying to familiarize herself with common expenses and Tony’s tech terminology. Natalie helped her some there, even demonstrating a “Widow’s bite.” 

“You know,” Anna mused, “this could be developed into a taser that looks like jewelry for young girls to wear when they go out. Self-defense you can wear and not have to reach for.” Nat hummed, and Anna ran the idea past Tony in the workshop that night.

“Write it up,” he said. “You saw how much it costs to make. We’ll send the concept to R&D and see if they can’t do something with it.” He leaned back against his workbench and crossed his arms. “You may have just offset some of the Avengers’ less heinous expenses. That deserves a reward.” 

She sidled over to him, wiggling her way into his arms and looping hers around his neck. “What kind of reward did you have in mind

“I like the way you think, but no,” he set her a half-step away from him. “How about this?” And from his pocket he pulled a small blue box. “It was my mom’s, and if you don’t like it, or don’t want the symbolism, we can shop for something you do like. But I think she’d like you, and Anna,” he paused for breath. “I love you.” He opened the box and her head swam as he pulled out the gold and diamond ring. “Marry me.” He didn’t ask, but stood there with the ring in his fingers and his heart in his eyes.

Tears spilled from hers as she nodded, unable to speak. He took her left hand and slid the ring on. It was a little loose, and slid to one side. She curled her fingers tightly so it wouldn’t slide off and jumped into his arms. He caught her.


	19. Chapter 19

Natalie stared at the ring, then at Tony and Anna. “That was fast.” She said

“I want you to be my maid of honor,” Anna said.

Natalie rose from the table and hugged Anna tight. “Of course, kotenok.”

 

Rhodey stared at the ring, tears welling in his eyes. He hugged both Tony and Anna.

“I’m the best man,” he declared.

“Of course you are,” Tony replied.

 

Judy saw the ring before she was fully off the elevator and squealed in delight, making Achilles bark.

“I am so happy for you!” she burst into tears while hugging Anna. “He is perfect for you!”

To Tony she said privately, “if you ever treat her the way that shithead Waycroft did, I will cut your balls off and feed them to you.”

“She will never want for anything,” he promised, “including my attention.”

 

Dr. Charlotte saw the ring and requested a session with the couple together. She was willing to come to the tower, so Tony agreed.

“You understand why Iron Man can’t be seen coming to a psychologist’s office,” Tony said, once they were seated in his living room.

“I do,” Dr. Charlotte said. “And if you decide you are interested, I can continue to come here under the guise of other business – I use the salon in this building, for example.”

Tony hummed, and Anna very carefully did not allow the hope she felt welling up to show on her face. Dr. Charlotte had helped her so much, and she felt that any issues she and Tony faced because of his past traumas would be greatly abated if they had her to help them talk through them.  
***

They did decide that the setting was not really her style, and had the diamonds set into something simpler and more modern. Tiffany’s was happy to rework the ring, especially when Tony ordered a necklace and earrings designed to match as a wedding present. Anna didn’t know about those yet

They were in the work shop late one evening, she with a datebook and he with a project while they kicked around dates and locations for the wedding. Anything in New York was booked literally for years out. They were considering a small destination wedding and debating beaches versus castles (how was this her life?) when Anna felt a hard cramp tear through her abdomen. She broke out into a sweat and bent double, trying to breathe.

Tony, his back to her, continued to chatter. “You know, I own an island,” he was saying. “We could fly everyone down, have the wedding, then fly them all home while we stay for a couple of weeks

“Tony,” Anna gasped softly, too softly for him to hear. “Alpha!” she tried again, her eyes tracking him from too far away.

Tony whirled at the cry. He clapped, closing the hologram he had been working on, and lifted his chin. He began stalking toward her, his hips swaying and his hands open to her at his sides. He knelt in front of her and leaned in, touching her only with his nose as he nuzzled into her hair. “Omega,” he breathed. And when he pulled back, his pupils were blown wide to swallow his iris. “How long?”

“Just starting, I think,” she panted through another cramp. “I haven’t had any symptoms until this.”

“May I touch you?” he asked formally. Because fiancée or no, as an Alpha he needed her permission.

“Yes, please,” she nodded. He placed one hand on her forehead, feeling for a fever, and one on her abdomen, kneading the knotted muscles there. She sighed at the dual relief of pressure and warmth and was able to lean back from her curled position.

“You’re just barely warm, sweetheart,” Tony advised. “Did your heats used to come on fast?”

Anna shook her head no. “But it’s been so long, this one’s going to be unpredictable.”

“Okay,” he rose, lifting her in his arms. “Friday, shut down the lab. Text Natalie and ask her to come get Achilles and keep him for a week. Text Pepper and tell her Anna and I are taking personal leave, same duration. Order electrolyte drinks to be delivered to the elevator and let me know when they are on their way up.”  
The bots scurried to their stations as Tony strode to the elevator. Computers ended their processes and the lab locked down behind them. Tony entered the elevator and Anna nuzzled into his neck. “That was pretty hot,” she whispered. “So take-charge. Very Alpha.”

“Don’t tease me right now, sweetheart,” Tony warned. “All my instincts are to get you wrapped up in my bed without delay. Is there anything you think you’ll need besides the drinks?” She would run a fever and lose a lot of fluids over the next several days, and some Omegas craved either sweet or salty foods during their heats.

“I don’t think so,” Anna said. “I just want you.”

Tony groaned and stepped off the elevator into the penthouse. Achilles came trotting out from the bedroom and halted, sniffing the air. He lay on the floor and showed his belly as Tony strode past. Cautiously, the dog crawled to the doorway and watched as Tony tucked Anna into bed. Once she was comfortable, Tony relaxed slightly and turned to the animal. “Come here, boy,” he patted the bed. While the dog wasn’t regularly allowed on Tony’s bed, he occasionally received an invitation to snuggle with Anna while she read or napped. Achilles snuggled up to Anna. “I don’t know whether he’s been exposed to an Omega heat or an Alpha reaction to it before, which is why I’m sending him with Natalie,” Tony explained as he went into the bathroom for ibuprofen, water, and a warm washcloth. When Anna had taken the pills and finished the water, he wiped her face and neck with the cloth. 

“It’s fine,” she said. “He’ll be good, won’t you boy?” The dog swiped her hand with his tongue, then sneezed, making Anna laugh. 

Friday advised the drinks were on their way up via the elevator, and Tony rose from his seat at Anna’s side. “Stay,” he told the dog, and he left the room to fetch the drinks. While he was in the kitchen, Tony gathered a small snack of fruit and cheese and a muffin for Anna and brought the offering to her with a chilled glass of orange drink. “The orange ones are my personal favorite,” Tony said, giving Anna the plate and setting the glass on the bedside table. “You’ll have to let me know which ones you like.”

“Pretty much anything besides the yellow ones,” Anna made a face. “This is good, thank you.” Tony preened and watched her eat. It satisfied the instinct inside of him to provide for her.

The elevator dinged again and Tony swiveled toward the sound. “Natalie,” Anna reminded him, and he settled.

The redhead waited in the living room, not stepping far from the elevator. She kept her head lowered even as her eyes watched Tony emerge from the hall. “All I need is his leash,” she said quietly, doing her best to not trigger any fighting instincts in Tony. 

“I’m okay, Nat,” Tony assured her. “A little edgy, but not off my rocker.” 

Natalie called Achilles and snapped the leash Tony handed her to his collar. As the dog danced at her feet in excitement for a trip out of the tower, she warned Tony with a smirk: “you may not be off your rocker yet, Iron Man, but you will be.”

After she left, Tony returned to the bedroom to find Anna sleeping, cuddled around his pillow. He took care of her empty plate and refilled her water glass, setting out things he thought they would need over the next few days. Then he showered and settled into the bed behind her, big-spoon style. He’d take care of his Omega, come what may.


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> GRATUITOUS CHAPTER OF BABY-MAKING SMUT. There’s no redemptive factor here, y’all. Skip it if you like; you won't miss any plot.

Anna woke with Tony wrapped around her possessively. She was warm, so warm, and a line of sweat trickled between her breasts. But her focus was on the pressure and need in her low abdomen. With a low moan, she rolled her hips back into his, feeling the hard length of his arousal, even in sleep. She could tell when Tony woke by a sudden inhale and tightening of his arms around her. He breathed out in a rumble and pressed her over onto her belly.

She reveled in his weight covering her, and when he stretched her arms up above her head, she left them there, gripping the top of the mattress. His hands skimmed down her arms, over her back, and cupped her buttocks as his knees parted hers so he could kneel between her thighs. She keened and wiggled in need as his fingers tested her wetness, and he grasped her hips tightly to hold her still as he positioned himself where she wanted him. With a single hard thrust, he drove completely into her, drawing a cry from them both. The quick stretch of her swollen tissues was just the pleasure side of painful, and the fever she was running felt like it would scald him. But he settled in deep, where her cervix was soft and the entrance to her womb opened by her Omega heat cycle, and the sensation was unlike anything he’d ever felt before.

Driven by his Alpha instinct, he tilted her hips up and fucked into her with long, smooth strokes until she was crying out on the brink of her release. Then, with a roar, he pressed the spongy head of his cock past the opening of her cervix to spill his release directly into her womb. Her inner muscles milked him, drawing his seed deep into her body, and they collapsed together onto sweat-soaked sheets.

Tony rolled to his side, bringing Anna with him, and stroking her hair back from her face. “Are you alright, sweetheart?” he asked, his voice rough. At her nod, he suggested: “How does a bath sound?”

Anna was still catching her breath, but she managed another nod. “Water,” she requested. Tony pulled a sheet over her and lifted her off the bed, carrying the bundled woman to the bathroom to set her down on the commode. He started a warm bath, dumping in a healthy amount of Epsom salts. Then he poured Anna a glass of water and handed it to her with two more acetaminophen to help keep her fever in check. As she drank, he brushed his teeth and poured each of them an electrolyte drink, setting the glasses on the wide ledge of the tub. He handed Anna her toothbrush, loaded with paste, and waited while she brushed. He helped her into the tub, and settled behind her, turning on the water jets to ease their muscles. The Epsom salt Jacuzzi bath was a regular ritual since becoming Iron Man, and Tony thought it would help Anna now. 

Sure enough, she sighed and relaxed bonelessly against him. “That’s it,” she said after a few minutes. “I’m keeping you, just for this tub.”

Tony chuckled and handed her her second drink. “And here I thought you were keeping me for my sparkling wit.”

Anna teased between sips, “That was before. Now, it’s all about the tub.” She rolled her neck to gaze up and back at him. “Thank you for taking care of me, Tony.”

Tony gazed down into her blue eyes, darkened by the haze of lust and heat. “For as long as you’ll let me, sweetheart.” He finished his drink and took a washcloth to wet it in the hot water, carefully wiping her face, letting the heated water soak on her neck and upper chest, then washing the rest of her body with slow, gentle strokes. She lay back and let him, her breath catching when he covered her breasts, making her nipples pebble, and when he washed between her legs, her hips bucking slightly in arousal. He finished her bath though, and his, before lifting and turning her to straddle him in the water. “Feel better?” he asked.

She nodded, words once again lost along with higher brain functions in the urge to mate. “Here or back to bed?” Tony asked, and she only looked at him in confusion before grinding down against his hardness. His head dropped back against the edge of the tub; “here, then,” he groaned and, shifting slightly, slipped back into her heat.

She rode him slowly, grinding her engorged clit against his pelvis to her first orgasm. While she was still gasping from it, Tony thrust hard up into her, finding the opening of her cervix again. When she felt the bump, she drove down against him, setting a furious pace that had water splashing over the side of the tub and both of them gasping for air. Within minutes, Tony once again lodged deep into her body and filled her womb with his release, and Anna collapsed against his chest, heart pounding and breath puffing raggedly. 

Tony withdrew gently and wrapped her in a bath sheet before tucking her into a chair in the bedroom with a blanket over her before stripping and remaking the bed with one of several sets of sheets he’d set out. He wiped up the bathroom floor, dried off, and tucked them both back into bed to sleep once more.


	21. Chapter 21

The next time he woke, Anna was still asleep, but he could feel her temperature rising. Tony went to the kitchen and fixed a plate of lean proteins and fruit for the two of them, setting out two more pills and downing one of the electrolyte drinks himself before she woke. When she did, he teased and cajoled her into eating and drinking. After, of course, succumbing to their primary instinct, which was to ensure she come out of heat carrying his child. A voice in the back of Tony’s head still insisted this was a horrendous idea, but that voice now sounded more like Howard than it did himself, and he’d been ignoring his dad for a long, long time. With Dr. Charlotte’s help, he thought he’d eventually relegate that voice to perdition, where it belonged.

And three days later, Anna woke clear-minded and without the urge to rip his clothes off, which Tony considered a win-lose, but that’s the way it goes, he figured. And later that afternoon, she was able to tell him that yes, their efforts had been successful; she was pregnant. Tony blinked once and commanded Friday to not order any more alcohol until the child turned 21. He was going on the wagon. Anna laughed and wrapped him tightly in a hug, then took him back to bed, “if you’re not tired of me, that is,” she teased. Tony showed her in no uncertain terms just how tired of her he was NOT.

 

They married in December, on Tony’s private island, just as they had discussed. And on her birthday in May of the following year, Anna delivered a seven-pound, blue-eyed baby girl with a full head of brunette hair. Tony was enchanted, and for the first time he could ever remember, as he held his daughter, his genius brain was still and quiet and content.


End file.
